Merlin's Heir in the Order of the Phoenix
by FireAngel312
Summary: With the return of Voldemort, the Wizarding World must be ready for him. However, the Ministry of Magic, do not want to see it and refuse to acknowledge his return. The secret group, the Order of the Phoenix, is trying their best to expose the truth and Cyrano, asked by Dumbledore, is set on a mission he knew was coming. AU of HP #5, Sequel to Merlin's Heir in Triwizard Tournament.
1. Searching

Author's Note: Before this chapter begins I must explain somethings I could not fit into the summery. First, Fudge does know about Voldemort's return and has accepted it (If you read the last fanfic you would know that). Second, the mission Dumbledore has for Cyrano is not really a mission, it's difficult to explain, but will be in a few chapters. Third, the beginning of this chapter will bring in part of a plot line that will come in play more later, whether in the next fanfic or the one after that( if you don't know, I'm trying to go through the whole thing, up until Voldemort's death.) This chapter begins with Cyrano in South Wales, looking for Merlin's tomb.

Cyrano stood in front of an oak tree that stood as a replacement for the ancient one that once stood in the same place. It was still rather small despite when it had been planted. Cyrano sighed, he wasn't getting anywhere. Cyrano stood on the corner of Oak Lane and Priory Street in Carmarthen, South Wales. He had hoped it would be a start in his search for Merlin's tomb, but it proved fruitless. Merlin had made a prophecy about Carmarthen;

_When Merlin's Oak shall tumble down,_

_Then shall fall Carmarthen Town._

However, Cyrano could tell that Merlin's oak was not here. Merlin had contacted Cyrano right before the summer break. He told Cyrano that soon he would free his ancestor from his cage, but it was still sometime before it would happen. Cyrano decided to start his search for the oak tree, but he only just started and he only had a few clues from old texts on Merlin. Of course, a lot of the old texts on Merlin were written in Welsh, so they always used Merlin's welsh name, Myrddin Emrys. He had looked up several locations that mentioned either one of his name procured a number

It was a little breezy in South Wales; Cyrano pushed his traveling cloak a little farther up on his shoulders and looked around. No one was paying much mind on the young dark haired, grey eyed fifteen year old youth. To tell the truth there didn't seem to be much people on the streets. Carmarthen was a mix of muggle and magical residents, those who were magical were probably wary know that Voldemort was back.

For that same reason Kate Blaxton, mother to his best friend and the closest person he had ever had to a mother, had been watching him closely to make sure he didn't pull a stunt like he did. He was, however, determined to find Merlin's oak and slipped out of the Blaxton's home during the middle of the night a month after he arrived there. Since then he'd been traveling across the country looking into every place that involved Merlin. There were several legends saying were Merlin was buried, mostly caves, but Merlin had relayed that a tree encased him. Despite that, Cyrano visited several locations that had involved caves, Alderley Edge; though the cave no longer existed there, Bardsey Island, he even visited Stonehenge, but so far discovered nothing. Cyrano, however couldn't help but feel like he was in the right place, it was something about Carmarthen that made him feel the oak was nearby. However, summer break was coming to a close and he needed to return to the Blaxton's.

Cyrano turned from the oak tree and walked up the Oak Lane. Carmarthen was far from small, with the legend of Merlin having been born there, the town had become pretty far, he had passed a shopping center called "Merlin's Walk", a "Myrddin County Primary School", the names were endless. Cyrano crossed in front of "Falcon Hotel". It was a modest looking building, a pale cream color with a few flower boxes in the top windows. Though it was the building he was looking for it wasn't the place he wanted to be. He turned down an alley at the side of the building and proceeded to the back where he turned again to find a sign, on it was a falcon similar to the one at the front of the building, one of the many symbols of Merlin. Under the sign was a wooden door. If a muggle had passed down where Cyrano was, they would not have seen this, it would have looked like a plane wall.

He opened the door and entered into the magic tavern. It was similar to the "Leaky Cauldron"; dark, but half lit by the roaring fire in the fireplace. There was two people at the small tables that littered the room, Cyrano weaved his way through these and approached the bar. Cyrano hoped there was a free room. The bartender was a stout fellow; his beard as white as Merlin's and his eyes were a hazel brown, he had a kind look.

"Excuse me," Cyrano said with an iron rasp in his voice, his voice had been permanently scarred after his face off with the Horntail the year before. The man, who was wiping the bar top with a rag, he looked up when the young wizard spoke, "You wouldn't happen to have a free room?"

"You should ask Jaymee Carwyn, she takes care of the rooms."

"Where can I find her," said Cyrano. The man lifted his hand and pointed to a door on the left. Cyrano pushed two galleons towards the bartender and headed for the door.

He found himself in a small dark room; the only light in the room came from a candle on a desk in the center of the room. At the desk sat an auburn haired woman who looked to be in her mid-thirties. She apparently hadn't heard him come in because she continued to look at the papers that were on her desk.

"Hello, Miss Carwyn" Cyrano said. The woman jumped a looked up from the papers. Cyrano moved closer to the desk so the woman could see who she was talking to.

"What do you want," the woman, Jaymee, asked.

"I was wondering if you had a free room where I could bunk for the night," Cyrano told her.

"Give me a moment," she said. Jaymee got up from her desk and flicked her wand into the darkness. The room was slightly bigger than it appeared, containing not only the desk, but also a cabinet and a bed, there were no windows in the room. She move towards the cabinet and opened it, she shuffled her hand around in it for a moment or two before pulling out a brass key. She moved back to Cyrano and handed the key to him.

"Second floor, third door on the left, Mr...," she trailed off waiting for him to finish the sentence for him, which he did reluctantly.

"Odion," Cyrano said, "but if you would be so kind not to tell anyone I was here, I would be ever so grateful."

"Right, yes Mr. Odion," Jamyee said with wide eyes, she bowed slightly, "would you like for me to send up some dinner for you?"

"No, I'll be fine," said Cyrano as he moved across the room and exited through the door. He strolled across the main room and went up the set of stairs that led into a half sunlight lit hallway, the sun was setting. He went to the door that the woman had told him was his room and entered. It was small; it had a small bed and a nightstand that had a water filled basin sitting on top of it. The sight of the basin reminded him of the Pensive that Dumbledore owned, which made him think about the previous year. Cyrano sat down on the bed a sighed.

The journey back to the Blaxton's residence would take a few days, he would travel by any means necessary until he was back in Britain, then he would catch the Knight Bus. He sighed and laid back on the bed. When he returned, as soon as he was in the door way, he would get an earful from Kate. She would tell him how risky and stupid what he did was, and that she was going to be watching him more closely and stuff like that. Miles, Mr. Blaxton, wouldn't be as bad. He would say something like he should have told someone where he was going and should have brought an adult with him. Cyrano was afraid magic around Merlin's tomb would have kept him from finding it if he had brought somebody along, an Heir of Merlin is the only one who can lay eyes on it. Jonathan and Morgan would be ticked at him for not telling them that he was leaving.

The only person he had told that he was leaving, he didn't tell him why he was leaving just that it was important, was Sirius and that was in a letter that he wrote on the night of his departure. And the letter he received back from his godfather wasn't to pleasant , he had written a great deal on how what could be more important than his protection and that Death Eaters would be on the look out for him. He was only saying that because know he had a chance at life again and didn't want his godson dying on him. Cyrano had burned that letter and all the others that were delivered to him after that, even the ones that had come from Dumbledore and Fleur. Fleur Delacour had kept in contact with Cyrano the summer, up to the point when he left the Blaxton's. He smiled at the thought of the French witch, he hadn't seen Fleur since the day she and the rest of the Beauxbatons had left Hogwarts. Cyrano fell asleep with the smile still on his face.

He woke up at five thirty by account of his watch, it seemed to be extremely dark, but Cyrano thought nothing of it. He pulled out a small sack of food. He had only stopped at a few places during his travels, one to throw off any death Eater that might have caught whiff of his and two to shake off any person sent by Dumbledore do collect him. It wasn't like he didn't trust the Headmaster, in fact he trusted him as much as Merlin and Sirius, but he had needed to do this and didn't want any interruptions. After eating some of the food from the sack, he left his room and went down stairs into the main bar room. He left ten galleons on the counter top and a letter telling the barkeeper that the money was payment for his stay. He then left the tavern known as "The Falcon".

Out in the alleyway was when a yellow flag went up in Cyrano's mind. It was slightly chilly for a summer morning, even for the time of the day that it was. He moved cautiously down the alleyway and moved back into the open street. He looked at the sky and saw that the clouds covering the sky where to dark to be normal. He continued to walk until he found himself back at the oak tree. It was there that the red flag went up. A cold chill that reached into his very soul, dispersing any feelings besides dread from his body. Cyrano turned towards Oak Lane and saw two tall, black cloaked figures, twenty feet and closing.

Dementors.

Cyrano didn't hesitate; he whipped out his wand just as the Dementors swept onto him. He fell as he stepped back; they took this as moment to attack him. He felt them pulling at his soul, trying to call it to them. Someone appeared at that moment; thankfully it was someone who could see them. Cyrano heard someone yell "Expecto Patronum". The attack on him was slightly lessened, but it was still there. He reached for his wand, which had fallen from his grasps when he had tripped. His had gripped the handle and he pulled the oak wand towards him.

"_Expecto Patronum_."

A thin wisp of silver smoke shot out from his wand, the Dementors were clouding his mind. One Dementor had left to fend off the person who had tried helping Cyrano. Darkness was consuming him; soon he would pass out like he had done every time he was near the horrible creature. He thought maybe it wouldn't be too bad to be consumed by the darkness, lose the hope and give in. He wasn't even sure what it would be like to die and then Cyrano remembered you didn't die from the Dementors Kiss, you just were soulless. You forgot how to feel, how to remember, how to move; a void of nothing. Cyrano didn't want to face that, if he was going out of the world, it was with his soul. His mind struggled to find the happiness he needed to create his patronus. A pair of sapphire eyes came to mind.

"_Expecto Patronum."_

A silvery, two foot tall dragon erupted from his wand and thrashed its talons at the Dementor driving it back. After several moments, the Dementor retreated and Cyrano turned his attention to the other one. He was struck with horror at what he saw. The Dementor was up against the wall holding the woman, Jamyee, by the throat about to perform the Kiss. Cyrano's courage came back to him in the nick of time. He sent his patronus after the Dementor and after another few moments, also fled. Cyrano rushed to the side of Jaymee, who was already sitting up and coughing a storm.

"Are you alright," Cyrano asked her, knelling beside her.

"I'm fine, wonder what Dementors are doing here," she said. Cyrano knew perfectly well why they were there; he just didn't know who sent them.

"Go back indoors and don't come out for the rest of the day," Cyrano told her, he lied next, "I have no clue why the Dementors are here, but I don't suggest we figure out."

"Are you going to stay as well," she asked as Cyrano helped her off the pavement.

"No, I got to make it back home, I'm leaving," Cyrano told her.

"Be careful," she called back as he strode away.

With no means of travel, Cyrano started his journey by foot. For an hour or so he traveled up a highway until a muggle in a truck stopped and asked if he wouldn't mind a lift. Cyrano accepted the offer and within another hour and forty-five minutes found himself in the city of Newport. The whole time the man at the steering wheel talked about his life, his truck, and it went on. Cyrano sat there and half listened, that way if he was asked a question he could answer with a shake or a nod. After Carmarthen, he was reluctant to stay in any town or city; he found a small crop of trees were he set muggle wards around his camp. That night wasn't as peaceful as he was hoping it to be.

Soon after he fell asleep he was waken by soft chirping and a steady flow of a stream. Cyrano knew where he was, or at least he knew who had created the place. His ancestor loved tricks and this was one of the few ways he could still do that. Unlike previous encounters with Merlin, he found this one to be quite calming, so let Merlin show himself on his own time. When he did Cyrano just stared at the old man.

He had white bushy hair that lay lank over his ears, and a straight growth of white beard, which was roughly trimmed. His hands were calloused with long fingers. Merlin's veins crawled and knotted on them, distended like worms. His face was the most holding bit; it was thin, cavernous almost as a skull, with a high domed forehead and bushy white eyebrows that covered his grey stormy eyes. His nose was a thin beak, giving him a look of his birth name, Merlin; the falcon.

"How's your search going," the old wizard asked.

"I think you know," Cyrano said standing up.

"Yes well, I knew it wasn't easy," Merlin sighed. He looked, for the first time, that age had caught up with him. But where he was age would not touch him until he was released.

"Then how did the other Heir, the one that brought back the branch for my wand," Cyrano held up the strip of oak that always was there to defend him.

"I don't know, he obviously knew something that neither one of us knew. He might have told me, but there is an enchantment on me so if I'm told something about this place, something I don't know about I'll forget it."

"Are you sure you don't remember anything," Cyrano had asked this question last time.

"I told you I remember everything, except for the last few hours of my life and other times. The Lady of the Lake removed specific memories from my head; a location I think, something from my past," Merlin was pacing back and forth. The fallen leaves of the surrounding trees crunched under his feet.

"And this doesn't bother you," asked Cyrano.

"Bother me," Merlin exclaimed with irritation, "of course it bothers me. I, at birth, was granted the sight of the past and present and-"

"And god, to give you a chance at a better life, gave you the sight of the future. Yes, I know the story," Cyrano interrupted, "stop giving yourself a big head. Is there anything that doesn't seem right, something that should have more to it than what it is?"

It was strange to watch his ancestor, he made facial expressions younger children would make, but he was nearly 1500 years old.

"There is something that bothers me. As a young boy, Back in Wales, when Carmathen was known as Maridunum, I remember this old man by the name of Galapas. As a child I had few friends, no one ever wanted to hang around the bastard son of a demon, Galapas was one of those people who saw beyond that. In fact he was a lot like me; he was his own man, bound to no one. Anyway he taught me a lot about nature, unicorns, boggarts, hinkypunks, all sorts of the magical stuff, but he also taught me a lot about the normal animals as well, squirrels, porcupines, and birds. He was also the one to start me on my path with the Sight, but that is where it gets confusing. There was a place I met with him every day, it also held some significant with my training of the Sight, but I don't remember where. If I try to focus, it's like I'm there , but it's confusing. I'm there, I recognize the place and the name is at the tip of my tongue, but when I stop focusing, it's lost to me. The most I remember is country, lots of farm land and a river, Tywy if I recall correctly."

Cyrano was looking into space as he thought about it; he wasn't that far, he could still... No, he had to make it back, he had no clue as to the current situation back in Britian and he was sure Dumbledore was furious at him, " I wish I could help more, but school will be starting again and I need to get back. There was something I think Dumbledore wanted to ask of me, but he wouldn't tell me what, only that it could turn the tide of the war that will be coming in the next few years."

Merlin frowned; he didn't seem to be taken with any of the witches or wizards during the time period, "Just remember not to do anything foolish. If I remember correctly from what you told me of Hogwarts, isn't your school motto "Let Sleeping Dragons Lie"?

"Yeah, but with our family reputation...," Cyrano started jokingly.

"You know what I mean, though, technically yes, we would probably go and get near a sleeping dragon," Merlin tried to say with a stern face, but a grin broke across it. His grey eyes were so much like Cyrano's, that he thought he might be looking at the future him. He liked the idea of that, looking like his ancestor. He didn't realize that he was smiling.

"What's with that face," Merlin asked, he was looking down on his descendant. Cyrano pulled himself from his mind.

"Nothing, it doesn't matter. Once I get the chance I'll continue the search, maybe around Christmas I could slip away for a few days. Well, I guess the regular world is waiting and I don't want to be attacked by Dementors again, so..."

"Dementors? What?," but before Cyrano could answer his mind was replaced with darkness and then he was staring up into a clear blue sky. It took some time to figure out the bus route, but soon he had grabbed several buses and by the end of the day found himself in a small muggle town just inside of England. He was standing outside of the town near a small enclave of trees. He was tired from the long drives and the constant yapping of people on the buses. He stepped to the edge of the paved road that led into the town and raised his wand.

A deafening bang sounded through the air as a purple, triple-decker bus screeched to a halt in front of Cyrano. Stan Shunpike, the Knight Bus conductor stepped off an started speaking into the night.

"Welcome to the Knight Bus, emergency transport for the stranded witch or-"

"Stan, no need," Cyrano interrupted, "I need to get to the Blaxton residence."

"Right," Stan said looking a little abashed, he handed over Cyrano's ticket who handed over the money, "sorry 'bout that Cyrano."

"No problem, Stan. Hello Ern," Cyrano said climbing into the purple bus. The driver waved his hand in acknowledgement. Cyrano sat on the bed nearest to the exit as the bus banged loud again and took off in a blur of movement. Stan didn't make an attempt to talk and Cyrano was grateful for it. He nodded off to the constant bumping of the bus. He woke up several times to loud bangs when they stopped to let off some witch or wizard, it wasn't until early in the morning that the Knight Bus dropped him off on a country road not far from the Blaxton residence.

He walked up the road for several moments then small, but pleasant-looking house came into view. The Blaxton's home was suited for only a few, besides the twins and Mr. and Mrs. Blaxton, there was also Nick Blaxton, only two years old and Cyrano who lived in the house. It was white with a large yard, they lived three miles from the nearest town, which was a muggle one at that. He stepped onto the threshold and opened the door. The kitchen was empty and dark; there wasn't anyone to be heard. Well of course there's not it's the middle of the morning. Everyone is asleep, Cyrano thought. However, he still had this feeling that something was off. He shut the door as he entered the house. He checked the living room before going up the stairs.

He knocked on Mr. and Mrs. Blaxton's door first, no answer. He checked Jonathan's room next, no one was in there either. He skipped Morgan's bedroom and went to check Nick's. it was empty as well. There was no one in the house besides him. Cyrano went to the guest room, the room he had made his room and sat down on the bed. Where did everyone go, he wondered. A panicked feeling rose up inside of him, could they have been attacked when he was gone? No, they just left somewhere, somewhere to be safe, he thought, but where?

His mind took a journey of its own and returned to the night nearly two months before. The black graveyard, the large black cauldron, and the dark form of Voldemort rising from its depths. Cyrano still had no clue to as were the Ministry of Magic stood in the matter; they were reluctant to believe that the dark wizard had returned, despite the capture of Peter Pettigrew and his confession under Veritaserum. Dumbledore had told Fudge to keep quiet, but Cyrano was sure that by now he would have made a statement. As nothing had been printed in the matter since the third task, he had no idea what was standing on the matter.

He felt something at the edge of his consciousness's, his unique senses was warning him of a presence. He drew his wand and pushed himself of his bed. They must have arrived after he did because he hadn't felt the presence when he first arrived. He slowly turned his bedroom doorknob and opened the door, he stepped out into the hallway as quietly as he could. He moved towards the stairs, whoever was in the house was moving that way and Cyrano wanted to catch them off guard. He saw a light at the bottom of the stairs and he jumped halfway down in one leap aiming his wand with a spell on his mind. He caught a glimpse of sapphire eyes staring up at him.

"Cyrano," the silver haired witch said.

"Fleur," said Cyrano a little surprised, "what are you doing here?"

Fleur pulled Cyrano into a quick hug, "Looking for you of course, we 'ave been worried, you 'aven't been returning any of are our letters."

"I didn't return any of your letters because I didn't want anyone following me," Cyrano said, which drew a hurt expression on Fleur's face.

"What was so important zat you 'ad to leave in the middle of ze night and not talk to anyone for months," Fleur demanded.

"Can't tell you. Sorry, to important," Cyrano told her, trying to change the subject he asked, "where is everyone?"

Fleur looked around for a moment as though she was suspecting someone else to be there.

"It's not safe to tell 'ere, go pack your zings and zen we 'ave to go," Fleur said pushing him back up the stairs.

"Where are we going," Cyrano asked, but Fleur only shoved him harder. He rushed back to his room and started shoving everything he need into his trunk, not caring about the neatness. He had imagined a better reunion with Fleur, but under the current circumstances, he guessed it was better than what he would have gotten if Kate had been there. After ten minutes Cyrano had everything packed and lugged his trunk down the stairs, Archimedes was in his cage. Fleur was waiting in the kitchen, with a lit fire, she had obviously come in by Floo.

"I'm ready," he said approaching her.

"We must wait for some time, we cannot floo in until ze meeting is over," Fleur told him gesturing for him to take a seat at the kitchen table.

"Ah, the Order of the Phoenix, yes I remember," Cyrano sighed when he sat down. At the end of the previous year, a few days after Voldemort regained his body, Dumbledore had met them in the Hospital Wing. After a few questions from Dumbledore, the Headmaster asked Fleur if she would join a secret order called the Order of the Phoenix, it was set up in the old war against Voldemort. Fleur readily accepted, Cyrano had wished to join as well, but Dumbledore had refused to let him join. However, he had said that if Cyrano could find a way to be older than his age, Dumbledore would allow him to join. The first month back from Hogwarts Cyrano had spent thinking over these words; he knew an Aging potion wasn't what Dumbledore had in mind so he thought deeper into the subject. He gave up when he knew he wouldn't find anything to make him old enough to join. Accompanied with the agreement, Fleur would have to finish her eighth year of Beauxbatons at Hogwarts.

"So, how was your summer," Cyrano asked in an attempted to change the subject.

"It was fine, zere was very little to do until Dumbledore summoned me for ze order," Fleur told him, her form was slightly eerie in the half lit room, "I would ask 'ow your's went, but most of it was 'iding from ze world."

"I wasn't hiding," Cyrano interjected.

"Zen what," Fleur demanded. Cyrano could feel the anger radiating from her.

"It isn't the time to tell anyone, I'm doing this for someone and he has made me promise not to say anything. I have to respect his wishes," Cyrano told her.

"Why," Fleur asked, Cyrano sighed, she was too curious for her own good.

"Can't tell you that or it would tell you who he is," Fleur huffed at his answer and he shrugged. What could he tell her, that he was searching for the tomb of his ancestor that was supposed to be dead? Why did she even want to know, he's agenda was his own and he always kept to himself a lot, except for what he told Jonathan and Morgan. The half lit kitchen was silent. Cyrano didn't know if it was just because of recent events or if it was clouds in the skies, but lately everything seemed dark and gloomy.

"Ze meeting is over now, we can go," Cyrano couldn't see how she had been contacted, but decided not to question it. He stood up and strode to the fire. He picked up the flower-pot full of Floo powder of its usual place on the fireplace and then realized he didn't have the faintest clue to where he was supposed to be going to. He turned to Fleur, who shoved a piece of paper into his hands before he had time to say a word. He turned the paper so fire light caught the surface of it and read:

_The Headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix may be found at number twelve, Grimmauld Place, London._

He looked up at Fleur with a questioning looked, but only got an indifferent one in return. He put his hand in the flower-pot and drew out some Floo powder, he threw it into the fire and stepped into the emerald flames.

"Number Twelve, Grimmauld Place," Cyrano said, he lost sight of the room in a flurry of green flames and other wizarding rooms.

Author's Note: Okay, quite a bit different from the beginning of HP #5. Later on it will come apparent to what Dumbledore wants, probably in this next chapter, or quiet possibly the one after that. There will be a few things that will crop up as they did in OP, like Umbridge will still be in it. She will most certainly show her dislike for Jonathan, Hagrid, Fleur, and couple of visitors who will be coming to Hogwarts later in the story. Ministry will be different though, after the trial of Sirius Black and the review of the law of the execution of Draconians. Also the Horcruxes might pop up in this as well, I always found that Harry had too easy of a time to find them.


	2. Grimmauld Place

Author's Note: This be the next chapter. Cyrano has finally come to Number Twelve Grimmauld Place and there are a few people unhappy with him. Dumbledore will be there briefly, but I don't think the exciting part of the beginning will come until the next chapter if I get enough to put into this chapter.

Cyrano stumbled slightly as he stepped out of the fireplace, he was only still learning how to exit Floo travel correctly. He heard a whoosh as Fleur entered in after him. He glimpsed the room they had come out in. A cavernous room with rough stone walls. Most of the light was coming from the large fireplace that they had just exited. A haze of pipe smoke hung in the air like battle fumes, through which loomed the menacing shapes of heavy iron pots ad pans hanging from the dark ceiling. Many chairs had been crammed into the room for the meeting and a long wooden table stood in the middle of them, littered with rolls of parchment, goblets, empty wine bottles, and a heap of what appeared rags. Several people were still sitting at the table, apparently the meeting had only just finished. Dumbledore was sitting at the head of the table, his hands folded in one another and his eyes locked on Cyrano. Others took notice as well.

"CYRANO JAMES ODION," it was Kate Blaxton. She was like any other normal woman who looked after someone she considered a son. She would laugh with him, talk with him, and more importantly yell at him when he had done something she thought was inconsiderate, " WHERE THE BLOODY HELL DO YOU THINK YOU'VE BEEN? YOU JUST UP AND LEAVE IN THE NIGHT WHEN EVERYONE'S ASLEEP AND DON'T EVEN BOTHER-"

"Please Kate, sit down," Dumbledore ordered, looking at Mrs. Blaxton, "Cyrano has only just returned, and besides I'm sure he had his reasons." Dumbledore's eyes were on Cyrano once more.

"But-," Kate started again, but Dumbledore cut her off.

"Not right know," he nodded pointedly to a chair, "please sit Cyrano."

"Uh...okay," Cyrano took the seat Dumbledore indicated to, which was right next to him. Fleur, after removing Cyrano's trunk and owl from the room, moved around the table and sat next to McGonagall, who sat two seats from Sirius. He didn't look to pleased either. However, he did give a smirk when he noticed that Cyrano was looking as him. Cyrano took his eyes off of his godfather and swept the table, looking at the parchment rolls.

Dumbledore cleared his throat, "_Evanesco!"_

The parchment disappeared from the top of the table. Cyrano refocused his eyes on the head of the table, "I thought the meeting was over?"

"It is, but dinner is about to be served and I wanted to talk to you before I left," Dumbledore told him, "so may I ask for everyone to, that includes you as well Sirius."

Sirius had stood up and opened his mouth to speak, but was silenced by Dumbledore. The headmaster stared pointedly at everyone until they started to shuffle for the door. Fleur lingered a second or two more before she exited the room like the rest. Now it was just him and Dumbledore.

"So, this is the headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix," Cyrano said, glancing around the room.

"Yes and I must say, we are quite thankful to Sirius for lending it to us," Dumbledore said, he wasn't looking Cyrano straight in the eyes, but focusing just above them.

"What do you mean," Cyrano questioned.

"This was were Sirius grew up. I dare say that he wasn't really fond of this place, though," Dumbledore placed his fingertips against on another, "Now, my I ask exactly what of your ancestor's, Merlin, were you searching for?"

"Sir?"

"Please, Cyrano, I may be an old man, but you insult me to think I'm not smart enough to know that your month wandering was all for nothing," Dumbledore was smiling, "plus a Dementor attack was reported a day ago in South Wales. The woman who admitted to producing one of the patronus' conjured told the aurors that the second one was produced by a boy no older then 14 or 15, she said his patronus took shape of a dragon."

"I thought maybe she would be a little discreet about my patronus, but I guess that was asking to much," Cyrano sighed, running his hand through his hair.

"Not to mention she would have reported it to me as she is a official member of the Order of the Phoenix," Dumbledore said, he was beaming.

"You mean the tavern owner...that was why she showed up when...damn, how many members does the organization have," Cyrano asked amazed.

"Enough to keep an eye on you, every place you visited an Order member was stationed. When you sent Sirius that letter I knew I had a job in for me, so I posted Order members everywhere, places that may involve your past or ancestry," Dumbledore said, "Now, I believe you have an question to answer."

"Exactly what do you want to know," Cyrano asked. He was sure if it came down to it he could tell Dumbledore about Merlin, but he wanted to make sure that Dumbledore was just asking a simple little question.

"Tell me what you think I want to hear," Dumbledore said. Cyrano was a little taken aback by the answer he was given.

"Well, there is something I'm looking for, but under a promise I can't tell you exactly what," Cyrano told Dumbledore.

"Is it an item that you may use against Tom, or quite possibly, is it something Voldemort may use," Dumbledore asked. The topic had cropped up 2 months before. Voldemort was back, using Cyrano's blood, he could possibly use items that only an Heir may use. Cyrano thought it was a scary concept, but excepted it.

"No, not an item, a place, but I'm not exactly sure what it is that I will find," Cyrano said, he brushed his right hand over the surface of the wooden table.

"Is there something important about this place, something that could help our fight against Riddle," Dumbledore pushed on.

"Quite possibly, yes, but I'm not exactly sure," Cyrano said, Dumbledore took this as a sign to stop asking questions on this topic and started a new conversation.

"Before the school term was over, I told you that I would accept you into the Order only if you learned the way to be older than you are, do you know what it is that I referenced to," Dumbledore asked. He didn't even need to be staring you in the eyes and he could bore you with the blue x-ray eye.

"Uh, no I'm not exactly sure what you were referring to. To tell you the truth, I don't think there is a way," when Cyrano said this Dumbledore only smiled.

"There is a way Cyrano, you just have to think hard about it," Dumbledore said standing up, "well, I must be going there are things I must attend to."

He started to walk towards the door, but Cyrano stopped him, "Sir, I thought you said you had something for me to do?"

"I do, but first work on your age issue first," Dumbledore turned and exited the room. Cyrano should have guessed that he only got the job if he knew how to join the Order. People started to fill the room again. Jonathan and Morgan were the first to reach him, but he didn't pay them to much attention when his Godfather had entered the room. Sirius looked a lot better than he had the months prier to the point. His eyes were as sunken into his skull, he had gained some meat around his scrawny bones, he even had changed from the rags he had worn in Azkaban. Though, he still had a pale complection, soon,at Peter's trial, he would be declared innocent of the crimes he was sentenced for, he would be able to see sunlight again. Cyrano got out of his chair and hugged his godfather. Sirius pulled away to look at his godson.

"You should have brought someone with you, Jonathan would have made sure you arrived back safely," Cyrano could see the worried look in Sirius's eyes.

"You heard about the Dementors didn't you," he asked. That was when Kate broke in, despite her tall, eligent figure, she was someone you did not want to get angry.

"Of course, we heard about the Dementors! Even the Ministry knew who cast the patronus, yours is to unique to over look," Kate rambled, she was stomping around the kitchen, finishing what appeared to be dinner, "and what was in Wales that was so important? You know it took Dumbledore a whole week to track you down. I insisted we call you back, but, no, Dumbledore told us you were doing it for a reason and if you-"

"Kate, give it a rest," Miles told her, as he too, re-entered the room accompanied by Fleur, "Hello, Cyrano. It's good to see you again."

"So, what's been happening since I disappeared from the wizardry world, they don't write much in the papers anymore, so I haven't known anything since the night I left," Cyrano asked siting back down.

"Why don't we eat first before we get into anything," Sirius said. Cyrano had a feeling his godfather was keeping him in the dark deliberately, much like he had done to Sirius for the past month. Sirius turned to Morgan, "why don't you get Jack and Blake, no doubt there up to trouble somewhere in this house."

"Jack and Blake are here," Cyrano asked puzzled as Morgan left the room.

"Well, both of Jack's parents are Order members, Blakes mother is as well," Sirius said. Blake's father was muggleborn, "they were big helpers in the last war, so they thought it would be safer if their children were out of harms way. Something it seems you can't even achieve."

"Listen Sirius, I made it out alive, didn't I," Cyrano said irritated.

"Yes, but you also preformed magic in a muggle populated town, you could have been hit with underage wizardry," Sirius exclaimed. It was obvious he was trying to make a worthy argument.

"Unlikely as it states in law, that if in a life threatening situation, an underaged witch or wizard may perform magic to save themselves," Cyrano countered.

"That doesn't matter, the Ministry isn't to happy about you telling the world that Voldemorts back," Sirius said, his voice rising slightly.

"That doesn't matter? Of course it matters because-"

"Cyrano, enough," Miles broke in, he had turned back to the doorway when a youth maybe ten years Cyrano's senior entered the room. His head was completely bald, whether he shaved it or he had it permanently done like that, Cyrano couldn't tell. He was rather muscular and his arms had several burns on them. Cyrano looked into his green eyes to find that the right one was faded white, obviously blind in that eye. He was quite taller than Cyrano, who was just under six feet by an inch or two, "Everybody, this is Brian Anderson, a new member to the Order."

"Hello," his voice was deep, "I'm intrigued to meet you all, but especially you, Mr. Odion."

"Yes, most everyone is," Cyrano mumbled.

"Don't take it the wrong way, I just found the way you took care of that Horntail very interesting. I work with dragons in Romania, I'd like to say you would be great addition to the team if you were ever looking for a job after Hogwarts."

"Thanks, but with the current situation in my life you would understand I'm not really focusing that far into the future," Cyrano said. Brian's laughter filled the room.

"Yes, no doubt about that," Brian said crossing the room to take a seat. Cyrano liked Brian he was a good fellow. They talked well they waited for people to gather and dinner to finish.

"I hear you have a fair knowledge of how to speak draconian," Brian said.

"Well, see Merlin was, as they were known and still are as far as I know, a Dragon Keeper. When I was told that I took interest in it and studied about them, Cyrano explained. It, or most of it, was a lie. He had discovered that Merlin had been a Dragon Keeper, a group of people who had made a deal with Magus Dragons, but that is pretty much all he studied. He had been born with the talent of speaking draconian, that of only descendants of Draconians can achieve. That was what Cyrano was, part Draconion, "I learned about the language as well and studied that as well. Last year was the only year I had ever needed use of it."

"So, do dragons recognize it, I mean do all dragons respond to it," Brian asked.

"Yes, but it is difficult to explain. See the Dragon Keepers only got the ability to learn the language because of the Magus Dragons. Magus Dragons are usually smarter, thing is only a Dragon Keeper or a descendant can recognize them. Other dragons will respond to it, but only so they can decide whether to listen to it or not."

"So it's like playing a gamble?"

"Yes, I have to trust them to decide to listen to me and they have to trust me that I'm talking truths. I was lucky that the Horntail decided to listen."

"Yes I heard about that," Brian said leaning forward slightly, "If I may, can I see the scar?"

Cyrano had no objection, so he showed Brian the scar, the one the Horntail had given him when it caught him with its tail. The dragon keeper looked over it briefly.

"I hear that the wound is the reason for your voice being as it is."

Cyrano nodded, "One of the horns on the tail caught my throat, slightly damaging my vocal chord."

"See this one," Brian said as he sat back in his chair and pointed to a long jagged scar running down the side of his face, "Got it form an Iron Belly, I was lucky it was still young at the time or I might have lost my whole face. And this one here'- he pointed to one one the lower nape of his neck-" pissed off a Horntail, though not the one you had to deal with, I was lucky enough to come away with such a small scratch."

"I see you like to hang around dragons a lot," Cyrano said with a smirk. Brian ckuckled.

"Yes, fascinating creatures, dragons," Brian said.

"You sound like Hagrid," Cyrano laughed.

"Hagrid, is he still working as gamekeeper at Hogwarts, I haven't heard about him in years. How is he?"

"He's teaching now, not just taking care of school grounds. He got hold of the Care of Magical Creatures post," Cyrano said. A few people entered the room. Two of them were Jack and Blake, Moody had also come in accompanied by a witch with hot pink hair.

"Are you going to be staying for dinner," Kate asked Moody as she set the table.

"Can't, I just wanted to see Odion," Moody growled as he limped across the room, his wooden leg thumping.

"I'm fine, Professor," Cyrano said in an attempt to greet Mad-Eye Moody.

"I don't know so much about 'Professor'," Moody said as he came to a stop in front of Cyrano, "never got around to teaching much, did I?"

"I guess not," Cyrano said. The year before an impostor, Barty Crouch Jr., trapped Moody in his own trunk. Barty pretended to be Moody the whole year, taking polyjuice potion when he needed it. He was meant to help Cyrano through the Triwizard Tournament, though, he hardly needed the help as Cyrano had gotten through it on his own. The fake Moody disappeared right after Cyrano came back from the graveyard, "what do you want to know?"

"Nothing, I just wanted to see you. I'm trying to decide whether your a fool or an competent wizard. What you did was reckless and-"

"Important, as Dumbledore may have told you as I was the one who told him," Cyrano interrupted. Moody just grunted. His electric-blue, magical eye was flickering around the room, his normal eye focused on Cyrano.

"That may be so, but it was still reckless, you can bet your broom that Voldemort will be watching for you."

"Yes, I can imagine," Cyrano noticed the witch with the pink hair staring at him. She saw that he had noticed.

"Wotcher, Cyrano," she said enthusiastically.

"That's Nymphadora Tonks, but-"

"You'll do right by calling me Tonks if you don't want to be the on the wrong side of a jinx," the witch Tonks said, glaring at Moody. Others joined the group in the kitchen after a time. Mundungus, a squat, unshaven man in a ragged overcoat introduced himself. Lupin joined shortly after.

"It's good to see you, Cy,"Lupin said as he hugged the young wizard.

"It's good to see you to, Lupin," Cyrano said, pulling away.

"I assume you think I'll be berating you about leaving, don't you?"

"It crossed my mind," Cyrano said sitting back down. Lupin sat down next to him.

"Don't worry, I assume between Sirius and Kate you've already had enough of it."

Soon everyone was sitting around the table. Lupin and Sirius were across the table from Cyrano. Morgan and Jonathan, who were excited to see him, sat on either side of him. They started into the stew that Kate had made and it was quiet for sometime. Soon chatter began.

"I've been meaning to tell you, Sirius, there's something trapped in that writing desk in the drawing room, it keeps rattling and shaking, " Kate said tuning to Sirius, "Of course, it could just be a Boggart, but I thought we ought to ask Alastor to have a look at it before we let it out. I only wished I had remembered well he was here."

''Whatever you like, "said Sirius indifferently.

"The curtains in there are full of Doxys, too," Kate went on, "I thought we might try and tackle them tomorrow.

''I look forward to it," said Sirius. Cyrano heard the sarcasm in his voice, but he was not sure that anyone else did.

Tonks, as Cyrano had learned was a metamorphmagus, was changing her nose for Fleur and Morgan. Miles, Lupin , and Sirius were talking about goblins, but it stopped shortly after it began. They didn't have an informant with the goblins yet. It was sometime later that the conversation dropped to a lull. Tonks was yawning widely, Morgan was trying her best to keep her eyes open, and Jonathan was resting his head on the table.

"Nearly time for bed, I think," Kate said, yawning.

"Not just yet, Kate," Sirius spoke up. He pushed away his empty plate and focused his eyes on Cyrano, "You asked earlier about what's going on I believe."

"Yes, though, after what I 'pulled', I didn't think I was going to be told anything," Cyrano was staring straight into his godfather's eyes.

"If it was me you wouldn't even be-" Kate started, but Sirius held up a hand to silence her.

"Kate he has a right to know, he did, after all, see Voldemort return," Cyrano knew that Kate wouldn't fight that. She could be pretty protective, but she knew when someone was owed explantions.

"Fine, Jack, Blake, Morgan, and Jonathan, how about you help me clear the table," Kate said stiffly. The twins looked like they wanted to argue, but Cyrano slightly shook his head an they went without a fight.

"I believe you had a few questions you wanted answered," Sirius said once the group had started their work on the far end of the table.

"A few, yes," Cyrano approached the conversation calmly, "The first one is this: What the hell is the Ministry doing?"

The question was so abrupt no one answered for a moment.

"I don't get what you mean," Sirius said.

"Well, Fudge knows the that Voldemorts back. I thought by now he would have announced it to the whole wizarding world."

"Fudge wanted to a month ago, but Dumbledore told him that that would be advisable," Sirius said.

"Why," asked Cyrano. He thought out of all the things, Dumbledore would have made it his top priority to warn everyone of Voldemort.

"Because of the people. I told you what the last wizarding war was like. People were terrified then, if they new a war like the last one 15 years ago was on their doorstep, how do you think they'ed react," Sirius said, "Their would be a bunch of people who would ignore what Fudge would say, they'ed call him a liar. Sure, there are those who would no doubt except the truth, but Fudge would loose his job within a month."

"So he's just going to sit back a do nothing," Cyrano asked, flabbergasted.

"What else can he do," Sirius asked.

"What about Wormtail's trial, their still going to hold it right?"

"Yes, but it's closed from the public as it shows that they made a mistake, and that a follower of Voldemort is claiming his masters back. Besides a full house Wizengamot judges and myself no one else will attend, Dumbledore will be there as he is Chief Warlock, but were not sure how long that's going to last."

"But you are trying to tell people, trying to make them see sense," Cyrano said. He didn't know what would happen if the wizarding world ignored their message.

"Well, of course, were trying to get it out," Lupin added into the conversation, " But as half of us our already associated with Dumbledore, were being kept track of. Tonks, Miles, and Kingsley, his another auror, could get fired. And it's important to have spies in the Ministry as you can bet Voldemort will. No one exactly likes to sit down to dinner with a werewolf"-Cyrano caught sight of Jonathan grimacing out of the corner of his eye-"And even after the trial, people aren't going to be thrilled to be in the same room as Sirius Black."

"Have you've been able to convince anyone," Cyrano asked, though he knew the likely answer to that as he had Order members following him all summer.

"A few, but its difficult especially when Dumbledore is being hit hard by Ministry officials They want him to stop spreading 'rumors'. It's a glorious thing that he hasn't been kicked off of the Chairmanship of the International Confederations of Wizards," Sirius said leaning back in his chair.

"Why doesn't Fudge step in?"

"Same reason as why he hasn't come out about Voldemort, it will risk his job."

"But it's more important to stop Voldemort isn' it, than to worry about a job," Cyrano becoming heated in the matter.

"To you maybe, but it's important zat we have Fudge's side, the Minister's side. Zere will be a chance were 'e will be able to announce it without lash back but not until Voldemort has shown 'imself," this was the first thing Fleur had said since the beginning of the conversation.

"What about Voldemort, what's he been up to," Cyrano saw Sirius take a quick glance at Kate, " there hasn't been any funny deaths or disappearances as far as I've heard."

"That's because there hasn't been any, as far as our knowledge goes and that's far. Voldemort's trying to lie low right now," Lupin said.

"Let me guess? I messed things up for him because I didn't die the night he returned," Cyrano said with a grim smirk. Lupin answered.

"Nobody apart from his Death Eaters was supposed to know he'd come back. But you survived to bear witness. And the very last person he wanted alerted to his return the moment he got back was Dumbledore, "said Lupin, "And you made sure Dumbledore knew at once. ''

"Thanks to you, Dumbledore was able to recall the Order of the Phoenix about an hour after Voldemort returned," said Sirius.

Cyrano was only comforted by that slightly, "He's trying to gain followers, isn't he?"

"Yes, but it's not as simple for him. It's not like he can march up to peoples houses and bang on doors. He tricks, jinxes, and blackmails. He has worked in secrecy before and is an expert in it. However, followers isn't the only thing he's looking into."

"Like what," Cyrano's interest rising slightly. He saw that Sirius was getting to something often discussed in the Order.

"Stuff he can only get by stealth," Sirius said quietly, "Like a weapon. Something he didn't have last time."

"You mean fifteen years ago?"

"Yes."

"What kind of weapon," Cyrano's interest in the topic was growing by the second, " Something worse than the Avada Kedavra-"

"That's enough!"

It was Kate, she had moved into earshot of the conversation. Cyrano had also taken notice that Blake, Jack, and the twins had slowed in their actions to clear off the table in order to hear the conversation. Kate was trembling slightly as she looked at Sirius.

"You've given Cyrano plenty of information. Any more and you might just as well induct him into the Order straight-away."

"Why not," Cyrano said calmly. He had just made it his first priority to work out what Dumbledore had told him. Though, he had to look as though he wasn't already close to being in the Order, so he was feeding them a false trail, "I'll join, I want to join, I want to fight."

"No."

It was not Kate who spoke this time, but Lupin.

"The Order is comprised only of overage wizards, " he said, "Wizards who have left school. "

He added this last bit as Jack and Blake opened their mouths.

"There are dangers involved of which you can have no idea, any of you. I think Kate's right, Sirius. We've said enough."

Sirius half-shrugged but did not argue. Kate beckoned imperiously to the twins and Jack and Blake. They headed for the door and Cyrano, recognizing the end of the conversation, followed suit.

They went into a gloomy hallway which had walls with peeling wallpaper and a thread bare carpet of a long, a cobwebby chandelier glimmered overhead and age-blackened portraits hung crooked on the walls. Cyrano heard something scuttling behind the skirting board. Both the chandelier and the candlestick on a rickety table nearby were shaped like serpents. Kate motioned for him to be quiet as they went past a pair of long, moth-eaten curtains, behind which Cyrano supposed there must be another door, and after skirting a large umbrella stand that looked as though it had been made from a severed troll's leg they started up the dark staircase, passing a row of shrunken heads mounted on plaques on the wall. A closer look showed Cyrano that the heads be-longed to house-elves. All of them had the same rather snout-like nose. Cyrano's bewilderment deepened with every step he took. What kind of parent's did Sirius have as a child?

As they went up the stairs, Kate turned to Cyrano and said, "You and Jonathan have the room on the second landing. Fleur and Morgan have the room right below yours and those two" - she motioned to Jack and Blake, who both smirked at how Kate had referred to them - "are right across from you. I want you all to go straight to bed, no talking, we've got a busy day tomorrow."

"What are we doing tomorrow," Cyrano asked Jonathan as they climbed to the second landing.

"Cleaning, this place hasn't been cleaned since Sirius's mother died. Which is kinda strange as they house-elf they owned last still lives here," Jonathan told him. They reached the second landing and Cyrano turned the doorknob of the room he and Jonathan were sharing. He stepped into a gloomy high-ceilinged, twin-bedded room. His trunk and Archimedes had been placed at the far corner of the room. There was a blank picture on the wall, it was breathing slowly as if someone was sleeping.

"It's not exactly the best place in the world, but it's comfortable enough," Jonathan told him crossing the room to the farthest bed and sitting down. They dressed into heir pajamas and laid down. Jonathan attempted o talk, but Cyrano chose to stay quiet. He needed time to think, which, at night, he had plenty of. He turned to his side and looked at the burning candle. He was like that for sometime, staring at the flickering golden flame.

He never recalled falling asleep, but than who does. Though, it was different than any dream he had ever had, even the one he had last year about Voldemort. He was seeing everything clearly, like looking through a Pensieve. However, it was no memory he was seeing. He was seeing a man, he couldn't quite catch what he looked like, walking down a stone corridor, it looked as if it had been chipped away by pickaxes. The man abruptly stopped and turned his head back towards were Cyrano was watching the event. He seemed to be staring straight a Cyrano, but the man only shook his head and continued walking. That was when he woke up. It was no longer then what he saw. He found himself starring at the candle, the flame had been blown out.

He knew what he saw was something more than a dream, but he couldn't question it further. He settled in again and drifted off to sleep.

Author's Note: Well, as we continue on in this story, I must explain a something to you. Cyrano's dream wasn't a dream, as you may have guessed. I will not reveal to you what it is yet, it is similar to the connection with Voldemort, only not, really hard to explain without revealing. Though, as I go on, perhaps, a few of you will know what is happening before it is revealed.


	3. The House of Black

Author's Note: It will be a lot of the same as in the book when Harry first arrived. You will, however, notice a change here and there.

He was shaken awake by Jonathan. Cyrano blinked a couple times before the room came fully into focus.

"'Mum says get up, your breakfast is in the kitchen and then she needs us in the drawing room, there are loads more Doxys than she thought and she's found a nest of dead Puffskeins under the sofa."

Cyrano groaned. A half hour later he was dressed and after a quick breakfast found his way into the drawing room. It was a long, high-ceilinged room on the first floor with olive green walls covered in dirty tapestries. The carpet exhaled little clouds of dust every time someone put their foot on it and the long, moss green velvet curtains were buzzing as though swarming with invisible bees. It was around this that Kate, Morgan, Fleur, Jack and Blake were grouped, all looking rather peculiar as they had each tied a cloth over their nose and mouth. Each of them was also holding a large bottle of black liquid with a nozzle at the end.

"Cover your faces and take a spray, " Kate said to Cyrano and Jonathan the moment she saw them, pointing to two more bottles of black liquid standing on a spindle-legged table, "It's Doxycide. I've never seen an infestation this bad, what that house-elf's been doing for the last ten years -"

"Probably only looking after Sirius's mum," Jonathan muttered as he reached for a spray.

"Wait, I thought you said Sirius's mother was dead," Cyrano said to Jonathan as slipped a cloth over his mouth.

"You know those black curtains we tiptoed past last night," Jonathan asked.

"Yeah."

"Sirius's mum had a portrait of herself put on the wall with a permanent sticking charm. Just make sure you never make to much noise around them," Jonathan told him, "besides at his age I'm surprised Kreacher can even manage that."

"You'd be surprised what Kreacher can manage when he wants to, Nathan,"said Sirius, who had just entered the room carrying a bloodstained bag of what appeared to be dead rats, "I've just been feeding Buckbeak, " - he added, in reply to Cyrano's inquiring look -"I keep him upstairs in my mothers bed-room. Anyway; this writing desk."

He dropped the bag of rats into an armchair, then bent over to examine the locked cabinet which, Cyrano now noticed for the first time, was shaking slightly. "Well, Kate, I'm pretty sure this is a Boggart," said Sirius, peering through the keyhole, "but perhaps we ought to let Mad-Eye have a shifty at it before we let it out - knowing my mother, it could be some-thing much worse."

"Well, your right about that," Kate said. A loud, clanging bell sounded from downstairs, followed at once by the cacophony of screams and wails.

"I keep telling them not to ring the doorbell," said Sirius exasperatedly, hurrying out of the room. Cyrano turned to ask, but Jonathan answered before he could.

"Sirius's mum." They heard Sirius thundering down the stairs as Mrs Black's screeches echoed up through the house once more:"Stains, of dishonor filthy half-breeds, blood traitors, children of filth."

"Close the door, please, Cy," said Kat. Cyrano took as much time as he dared to close the drawing-room door; he wanted to listen to what was going on downstairs. Sirius had obviously managed to shut the curtains over his mother's portrait because she had stopped screaming. He heard Sirius walking down the hall, then the clattering of the chain on the front door, and then a deep voice saying, "Hestia's just relieved me, so she's got Moody's Cloak now, thought I'd leave a report for Dumbledore."

Cyrano would have stayed longer if he hadn't felt Kate's eyes on the back of his head. Cyrano snapped the door shut and returned to the group around the curtains. Kate was bending over a book, apparently looking up on Doxys.

"Right, you lot, you need to be careful, because Doxys bite and their teeth are poisonous. I've got a bottle of antidote here, but I'd rather nobody needed it," She straightened up, positioned herself squarely in front of the curtains and beckoned them all forward.

"When I say the word, start spraying immediately," she said, "They'll come flying out at us, I expect, but it says on the sprays one good squirt will paralyze them. When they're immobilized, just throw them in this bucket," She stepped carefully out of their line of fire, and raised her own spray, "All right, squirt!"

Cyrano and the rest of the group sprayed the curtains and only had to wait a few seconds before a group of fully-grown Doxys came soaring out of the folds in the material, shiny beetle-like wings whirring, tiny needle-sharp teeth bared, their fairy-like body covered with thick black hair and its four tiny lists clenched with fury. Cyrano squirted a couple shots of Doxycide into the group. They froze in mid-air and, surprisingly, fell with a loud thud when they hit the worn carpet below. Cyrano picked a few up and threw them in the bucket.

"Blake, what are you doing," said Kate sharply, "Spray that at once and throw it away!"

Cyrano looked round. Blake was holding a struggling Doxy between his forefinger and thumb.

"Right-o," Blake said brightly, spraying the Doxy quickly in the face so that it fainted, but the moment Kate's back was turned he pocketed it with a wink.

"We're experimenting with Doxy venom," Jack told Cyrano under his breath. Deftly spraying two Doxys at once as they soared straight for his nose, Cyrano moved closer to Jack and muttered out of the corner of his mouth, "For what?"

"Just experimenting," Jack whispered back, "never know when you need to slip something to an enemy or to yourself."

"To yourself?"

"Visual effects. Need to look dead, your dead. Need to be sick, you'll look sick."

"I think that's what they have potions for," Cyrano said quietly as he sprayed a few more Doxys in the face.

"Were trying to produce a variety of outcomes, were experimenting with other things to, but that's something to share for another time," Blake said as he swept the Doxys Cyrano had sprayed into his pocket, behind Kate's back.

"So what are your plans with the money I gave you," Cyrano muttered, pretending to be adjusting the nozzle on his spray.

"Well, we haven't had a chance to talk about it much, Kate is worse than our own parents," said Jack, "But were heading towards a small business. Still deciding on what we'll exactly do though."

The de-Doxying of the curtains took most of the morning. It was past midday when Kate finally removed her protective scarf, sank into a sagging armchair and sprang up again with a cry of dis-gust, having sat on the bag of dead rats. The curtains were no longer buzzing; they hung limp and damp from the intensive spraying. At the foot of them unconscious Doxys lay crammed in the bucket beside a bowl of their black eggs, at which Jack and Blake were shooting covetous looks.

"I think we'll tackle those after lunch," Kate pointed at the dusty glass-fronted cabinets standing on either side of the mantelpiece. They were crammed with an odd assortment of objects; a selection of rusty daggers, claws, a coiled snakeskin, a number of tarnished silver boxes inscribed with languages Cyrano remembered seeing in his Ancient Runes textbook and, least pleasant of all, an ornate crystal bottle with a large opalset into the stopper, full of what Cyrano was quite sure was blood. The clanging doorbell rang again. Everyone looked at Kate.

"Stay here," she said, firmly, snatching up the bag of rats as Mrs Black's screeches started up again from down below, "I'll bring up some sandwiches."

She left the room, closing the door carefully behind her. At once, everyone dashed over to the window to look down on the doorstep. They could see the top of an unkempt gingery head and a stack of precariously balanced cauldrons.

"Mundungus," said Jonathan,"What's he brought all those cauldrons for?''

"From what I heard about him from Sirius, trying to hide them here," Cyrano muttered, the front door opened; Mundungus heaved his cauldrons through it and disappeared from view. He moved to the door. He was going to see if he could hear the conversation. Though, he hardly need to because when he reached the door and was about to open it, an explosion of sound from downstairs that rendered his movements quite unnecessary. All of them could hear exactly what Kate was shouting at the top of her voice.

"WE ARE NOT RUNNING A HIDEOUT FOR STOLEN GOODS!"

Cyrano flinched from the door, he had been straining his ears and with his senses it sounded like a cannon ha gone off in a broom closet.

''- COMPLETELY IRRESPONSIBLE, AS IF WE HAVEN'T GOT ENOUGH TO WORRY ABOUT WITHOUT YOU DRAGGING STOLEN CAULDRONS INTO THE HOUSE -"

"She 'as been wanting to go at Mundungus for ages," Fleur told him as he shot a glance at her. A fresh sound of Mrs. Blacks wails and screams reached the room and the ears of the small group. Cyrano made to shut the door, but before he managed it, a house-elf edged into the room. Except for the filthy rag tied like a loincloth around its middle, it was completely naked. It looked very old. Its skin seemed to be several times too big for it and, though it was bald like all house-elves, there was a quantity of white hair growing out of its large, batlike ears. Its eyes were a bloodshot and watery grey and its fleshy nose was large and rather snout like. The elf took absolutely no notice of Cyrano and the rest. Acting as though it could not see them, it shuffled hunch-backed, slowly and doggedly, towards the far end of the room, all the while muttering under its breath in a hoarse, deep voice like a bullfrogs.

"-smells like a drain and a criminal to boot, but she's no better, nasty old blood traitor with her brats messing up my mistress's house, oh, my poor mistress, if she knew, if she knew the scum they've let into her house, what would she say to old Kreacher, oh, the shame of it, Mudbloods and werewolves and traitors and thieves, poor old Kreacher, what can he do-"

"'Ello Kreacher," Fleur said. Cyrano snapped the door shut. The house-elf froze in his tracks, stopped muttering, and gave a very pronounced and very unconvincing start of surprise.

"Kreacher did not see young mistress," he said, turning around and bowing to Fleur. Still facing the carpet, he added, perfectly audibly, "Nasty half breed- "

"Kreacher," Cyrano snapped. He had not been introduced yet, but he could not stand by as the house-elf made insults to friends. The house-elf snapped his small head, his ears flapping in the air, towards Cyrano. When his gaze fell on Cyrano, his large eyes snapped open and he gave a small, pitiful whimper. He dropped into a bow, lower than the one he gave Fleur.

"Kreachers s-s-sorry young m-m-master, I did not mean to...Kreacher meant t-t-to say...," the house-elf stammered as bad as Quarrel had, he stumbled backwards. Cyrano forgot that house-elfs could see through the magic that hid his form. He had to do something before the scene got out of control. He was opening his mouth to say something when he felt air move as the door flew open.

"What's going on here," Sirius said as he saw Cyrano and Kreacher, who's state of panic had worsened in the few seconds interruption. Kreacher emitted a small shriek and ran from the room. Sirius's eyes trailed the old house-elf out the door, then his eyes met Cyrano's, "What was that about?"

"No idea," Cyrano shrugged. Thankfully it was convincing enough that Sirius let it go. Cyrano glimpsed Fleur staring at him worriedly. He winked, hopefully telling her he had it, and any future event such as that one, under control.

"So that's your parents's house-elf," Cyrano asked moving towards Sirius, who was standing by a tapestry that hung in the back of the room.

"Yes, Kreacher," Sirius said, his eyes focused on the tapestry, "He's been alone too long, taking mad orders from my mother's portrait and talking to himself, but he was always a foul little -" Sirius stopped there and did not speak for sometime. He just stood there staring at the tapestry.

"Why don't you free him," Cyrano suggested, but he guessed why they hadn't after he had asked the question.

''We can't set him free, he knows too much about the Order," said Sirius curtly, "And anyway, the shock would kill him. You suggest to him that he leaves this house, see how he takes it."

Cyrano sighed and looked at the tapestry, finally taking real interest in it. The tapestry looked immensely old; it was faded and looked as though Doxys had gnawed it in places. Nevertheless, the golden thread with which it was embroidered still glinted brightly enough to show them a sprawling family tree dating back (as far as Cyrano could tell) to the Middle Ages. Large words at the very top of the tapestry read:The Noble and Most Ancient House of Black "Toujours pur."

"I'm guessing you weren't a family favorite," said Cyrano after scanning the bottom of the tapestry.

"I used to be there," said Sirius, pointing at a small, round, charred hole in the tapestry, rather like a cigarette burn, "My sweet old mother blasted me off after I ran away from home - Kreacher's quite fond of muttering the story under his breath."

"You ran away from home?"

"When I was about sixteen," said Sirius, "I'd had enough."

"Where did you go," Cyrano asked glancing over the tapestry.

"Your dad's place," said Sirius, "Your grandparents were really good about it; they sort of adopted me as a second son. Yeah, I camped out at your dad's in the school holidays, and when I was seventeen I got a place of my own. My Uncle Alphard had left me a decent bit of gold - he's been wiped off here, too, that's probably why - anyway, after that I looked after myself. I was always welcome at Mr. and Mrs. Odion's for Sunday lunch, though."

"Do I want to know why you left," Cyrano half-glanced at his godfather.

"Plane and simple; I hated the whole lot of them," Sirius muttered,he had bent closer to the tapestry, "I haven't looked at this for years. There's Phineas Nigellus; my great-great-grandfather, see? Least popular Headmaster Hogwarts ever had; and Araminta Mehflua; cousin of my mothers, tried to force through a Ministry bill to make Muggle-hunting legal; and dear Aunt Elladora, she started the family tradition of beheading house-elves when they got too old to carry tea trays, of course, any time the family produced someone halfway decent they were disowned. I see Tonks isn't on here. Maybe that's why Kreacher won't take orders from her - he's supposed to do whatever anyone in the family asks him -"

"How is Tonks related to you," Cyrano asked, not even mildly surprised. They seemed to have the same sense of humor.

"Her mother, Andromeda, was my favorite cousin," said Sirius, examining the tapestry closely, "No, Andromeda's not on here either, look -" He pointed to another small round burn mark between two names, Bellatrix and Narcissa- "Andromeda's sisters are still here because they made lovely, respectable pure-blood marriages, but Andromeda married a Muggle-born, Ted Tonks, so -" Sirius mimed blasting the tapestry with a wand and laughed sourly.

Cyrano, however, did not laugh; he was too busy staring at the names to the right of Andromeda's burn mark. A double line of gold embroidery linked Narcissa Black with Severin Sandon and a single vertical gold line from their names led to the name Nicodemus, "You're related to the Sandons."

"The pure-blood families are all interrelated," said Sirius, "If you're only going to let your sons and daughters marry pure-bloods your choice is very limited; there are hardly any of us left. Kate and I are cousins by marriage and Mile's something like my second cousin once removed. But there's no point looking for them on here - if ever a family was a bunch of blood traitors it's the Blaxtons. "

But Cyrano was now looking at the name to the left of Andromeda's burn: Bellatrix Black, which was connected by a double line to Rodolphus Lestrange.

"Lestrange," Cyrano said grimaced at the name.

"They're in Azkaban,"said Sirius shortly. Cyrano looked at him curiously.

"Bellatrix and her husband Rodolphus came in with Barty Crouch junior,"said Sirius, in the same brusque voice, "Rodolphuss brother, Rabastan, was with them, too."

Then Cyrano remembered. He had seen Bellatrix Lestrange inside Dumbledore's Pensieve, the strange device in which thoughts and memories could be stored: a tall dark woman with heavy-lidded eyes, who had stood at her trial and proclaimed her continuing allegiance to Lord Voldemort, her pride that she had tried to find him after his downfall and her conviction that she would one day be rewarded for her loyalty.

"You never said she was your -"

"Does it matter if she's my cousin," snapped Sirius, "As far as I'm concerned, they're not my family. She's certainly not my family. I haven't seen her since I was your age, unless you count a glimpse of her coming into Azkaban. D'you think I'm proud of having a relative like her?"

Cyrano was taken aback by Sirius's reaction and opened his mouth to apologize, but Sirius beat him.

"It doesn't matter, don't apologize," Sirius mumbled. He turned away from the tapestry, his hands deep in his pockets, "Anyway, I had actually come up here to talk to you."

"About?"

"The hearing. I can truly say without hurting my pride that I'm pretty nervous, the last time I was in the Ministry I was being dragged through by aurors," Sirius said, half-glancing at his godson.

"Don't worry," it was probably the strangest experience for Cyrano, he was, instead of Sirius, telling him everything it would be alright.

"Not as easy as it seems. The Ministry...well, there still is a chance I'll end up in the hands of the Dementors," Sirius said glumly.

"There is evidence that your innocence; they'll clear your name, Sirius," Cyrano told him. The noise increased as Kate returned with a platter of sandwiches. Cyrano truthfully was probably just as worried as Sirius. He had not thought about the hearing once since dinner the previous evening; in the excitement of being back with the people he liked best, and hearing everything that was going on, it had completely flown his mind. At Sirius's words, however, the crushing sense of dread returned to him. He stared at Fleur, Blake, Jack and the Blaxtons, all tucking into their sandwiches, and thought how he would feel if his godfather was turned over to the Dementors.

"You know, I was thinking," Sirius started out slowly. Cyrano turned his eyes to Sirius and realized that Sirius had been watching him, "If I'am cleared...well, I don't know how it is over at the Blaxton's, but how would you feel about coming to live with me next summer?"

Cyrano's heart swelled with excitement, but he pushed it down trying not to get his hopes too high, "You mean here, in this place?"

Sirius chuckled loudly, "Yes, I suppose I better think about relocating before then, but..."

"Well, I don't know my exact plans, there might be things that pop up that I'll have to leave for," Cyrano said offhand.

"Like this summer," Sirius asked raising an eyebrow.

"Possibly,"was all that Cyrano said.

"Hurry up, you two, or there won't be any food left," Kate called. Sirius heaved another great sigh, cast a dark look at the tapestry, then he and Cyrano went to join the others.

Cyrano tried his best not to think about Sirius's hearing while they emptied the glass-fronted cabinets that afternoon. Fortunately for him, it was a job that required a lot of concentration, as many of the objects in there seemed very reluctant to leave their dusty shelves. Sirius sustained a bad bite from a silver snuff box; within seconds his bitten hand had developed an unpleasant crusty covering like a tough brown glove.

"Its OK," he said, examining the hand with interest before tapping it lightly with his wand and restoring its skin to normal, "must be Wartcap powder in there."

He threw the box aside into the sack where they were depositing the debris from the cabinets; Cyrano saw Blake wrap his own hand carefully in a cloth moments later and sneak the box into his already Doxy-filled pocket. They found an unpleasant-looking silver instrument, something like a many-legged pair of tweezers, which scuttled up Cyrano's arm like a spider when he picked it up, and attempted to puncture his skin. Cyrano seized it off his rm and crushed it within his own fist, using his strength from his draconian side.

There was a musical box that emitted a faintly sinister, tinkling tune when wound, and they all found themselves becoming curiously weak and sleepy, until Fleur, who seemed not to be effected by it, had the sense to slam the lid shut. A number of ancient seals; and, in a dusty box, an Order of Merlin, First Class, that had been awarded to Sirius's grandfather for "services to the Ministry".

"It means he gave them a load of gold," said Sirius contemptuously, throwing the medal into the rubbish sack. Several times Kreacher, avoiding any contact with Cyrano whatsoever, sidled into the room and attempted to smuggle things away under his loin-cloth, muttering horrible curses every time they caught him at it. When Sirius wrested a large golden-ring bearing the Black crest from his grip, Kreacher actually burst into furious tears and left the room sobbing under his breath and calling Sirius names Cyrano had never heard before.

"It was my father's," said Sirius, throwing the ring into the sack, "Kreacher wasn't quite as devoted to him as to my mother, but I still caught him snogging a pair of my father's old trousers last week."

One item that Cyrano took a good deal of interest to was a heavy locket that none of them could open. Each one, even Kate, tried to pry it open by jamming their nails into the seam. When it was Cyrano's chance, he took a good look at it, it was completely normal looking. It had a snake on the front, Cyrano noticed it formed a very ornate _S_. Well the others had their heads turned Cyrano slipped the locket into his pocket. He didn't know why, but he felt drawn to it. He would look at it more later when nobody was paying him any attention.

Kate kept them all working very hard over the next few days. The drawing room took three days to decontaminate. Finally, the only undesirable things left in it were the tapestry of the Black family tree, which resisted all their attempts to remove it from the wall, and the rattling writing desk. Moody had not dropped by Headquarters yet, so they could not be sure what was inside it. They moved from the drawing room to a dining room on the ground floor where they found spiders as large as saucers lurking in the dresser.

The china, which bore the Black crest and motto, was all thrown unceremoniously into a sack by Sirius, and the same fate met a set of old photographs in tarnished silver frames, all of whose occupants squealed shrilly as the glass covering them smashed. Snape might refer to their work as '"cleaning", but in Cyrano's opinion they were really waging war on the house, which was putting up a very good fight, aided and abetted by Kreacher. The house-elf kept appearing wherever they were congregated, his muttering becoming more and more offensive as he attempted to remove anything he could from the rubbish sacks. Sirius went as far as to threaten him with clothes, but Kreacher fixed him with a watery stare and said, "Master must do as Master wishes,"before turning away and muttering very loudly, "but Master will not turn Kreacher away, no, because Kreacher knows what they are up to, oh yes, he is plotting against the Dark Lord, yes, with these Mud-bloods and traitors and scum."

At which Sirius, no one gave protest, seized Kreacher by the back of his loincloth and threw him bodily from the room. The doorbell rang several times a day, which was the cue for Sirius's mother to start shrieking again, and for the others, Cyrano and Fleur did not join them, to attempt to eavesdrop on the visitor, though they gleaned very little from the brief glimpses and snatches of conversation they were able to sneak before Kate re-called them to their tasks.

Snape flitted in and out of the house several times more, though to Cyrano wished he had a chance to came face to face with the potions teacher; Cyrano also caught sight of his Transfiguration teacher, Professor McGonagall, looking very odd in a Muggle dress and coat, and she also seemed too busy to linger. Sometimes, however, the visitors stayed to help. Tonks joined them for a memorable afternoon in which they found a murderous old ghoul lurking in an upstairs toilet, and Lupin, who was staying in the house with Sirius but who left it for long periods to do mysterious work for the Order, helped them repair a grandfather clock that had developed the unpleasant habit of shooting heavy bolts at passersby Mundungus redeemed himself slightly in Kate's eyes by rescuing Jonathan from an ancient set of purple robes that had tried to strangle him when he removed them from their wardrobe.

Cyrano started having dreams about things he didn't remember, like like spells flying everywhere around him in an unfamiliar background or Jonathan helping him hastily up from the ground in a place he didn't recognize. The dreams left his head aching, not like during the third task when he had encountered Voldemort, they were just regular headaches, but they left him wanting to be alone. Occasionally, he found himself alone, sometimes accompanied by Fleur or one of the twins, but most of the time by himself. He used this time to think about what Dumbledore asked of him, but the answer escaped him. When it really frustrated him, he would pull out the heavy gold locket he had pocketed. It was strange, he seemed familiar with it, like he had seen or held it before, but he could not place such a time. Once he slipped the locket over his head and let it lie against his chest, a sense of forbidding instantly descended onto him. He hastily ripped it of his neck.

What his mind was really focused on was Wormtail's hearing. If what Sirius and the other members of the Order said was true, Sirius could still be sentenced to the Dementor's Kiss. It was even worse that Sirius was Cyrano's godfather, anything to do with Cyrano and it might mean automatic sentence. There was still no out right attack on either Cyrano or Dumbledore in the Prophet, but Cyrano knew it was only a matter of time before the paper ignores Fudge. That was another thing that bothered him, Fudge had still made no move on telling the world of Voldemort's return. Of course, he wasn't mad at Fudge, his anger was directed at Dumbledore, who had told Fudge to keep quiet until it was safe to speak of it.

Dumbledore came the night before the hearing to talk with Sirius. Cyrano didn't get to see him, but he was told by Kate when he had been searching for Sirius. So Cyrano wondered the house alone waiting for Sirius. He came across Fleur once on the second landing, when she spotted him she gave him a weak smile which he returned. It was nearly an hour before Sirius found Cyrano with Buckbeak in the master bedroom.

"Hey," Sirius said as he closed the door behind him. He moved to the opposite side of Buckbeak, bowed until the hippogriff allowed him to move closer, and sat down.

"What did Dumbledore want," Cyrano asked as he glanced over Buckbeak's back.

"He wanted to go over what I was to say and what not to say, things I should say and things I should leave him to talk about, things like that," Sirius said half-minded as stroked Buckbeaks back.

"Still worried," Cyrano asked.

"Yes."

"Me too," Sirius laughed at that, as well as Cyrano, though his was graveled making him sound more like a murderous man than his godfather had when he had first met him.

"Listen," Cyrano started casually, "I was hoping I could go with you?"

"I tried to talk Dumbledore in allowing you to go with, but he said that it might not help me in my case," Sirius said with a sigh.

"I figure that would be the answer," Cyrano said his eyes focused on the door.

"Well, it was worth a shot," Sirius said, also looking at the door. They stayed like that for a couple of hours in complete silence, spending as much time as they could in the event hat Sirius did not return.

Author's Note: First thing that I must explain is about the gold locket. I always found that Harry found the Horcruxes to easily in the amount of time that he did. So I decided that they would be brought up in this book, they probably won't start hunting them, but they will be brought up and explained. Cyrano, as I have decided sense the beginning, will join the Order, likely in the next chapter, if not, the chapter after.


	4. Trial and Vision

Author's Note: As I have said before, as I continue to type, I find I have little to say for each chapter and will leave it at that.

Cyrano awoke Peter's hearing imprinted into his brain, then, unable to bear it, he leapt out of bed and went to the bathroom. Though he would not be going with Sirius, he would be seeing him off and he wanted to see his godfather off in clean cloths and washed hair. When he saw himself in the bathroom mirror, he was a little shocked by his appearance.

His normal shoulder-length hair had grown several inches and looked like mice where nesting in it. He looked as if he had not seen the light of day in a few months and he had bags under his eyes. He looked at himself for a couple minutes before and thought about everything he was going through, then he reached for a pair of scissors. It took a half hour, but when he set down the scissors he looked a little less wild. He had cut his hair down nearly to the scalp, all that was left was about an inch. This made his head feel a lot lighter and it made the scar that outlined the left side of his hairline quite noticeable. Then he showered and dressed.

As Cyrano crossed the room, Jonathan slightly stirred where he slept, but did not wake. Cyrano stepped out on to the landing and closed the door softly behind him. He walked quietly down the stairs, past the heads of Kreacher's ancestors, and down into the kitchen. It was empty when he entered, but he could smell something cooking, so it was obvious that Kate was up and about. He moved to the table and sat down, he leaned back in the chair and rubbed his temples.

He had some more dreams again, this time he saw a door, nothing special just a door. However, he felt like the door was important something he had to reach, but before he did his dream changed to the same ones he had been having, spells flying around him in a strange, dark room. He didn't mind the dreams, it was the headaches he got from them. They weren't strong, just a little twinge, but they were happening more often.

The creek of the door brought him out of his thoughts, he looked up to see who entered, it was Fleur. She had stopped dead in her tracks when she saw Cyrano.

"You look...different," she said with a small smile playing on her lips.

"Yeah, uh, needed a change I guess," Cyrano said.

"You 'ave something 'ere," Fleur said, brushing at the top of her head. He brushed his own head in the same area and found a patch of longer hair.

"Damn, I've never been good at cutting my own hair," Cyrano said as he got up to go and fix it, but Fleur stopped him.

"Sit down," she said. Cyrano sat back down. Fleur pulled out her wand and waved it through the air. The salt shaker on the table transfigured into a pair of scissors, Fleur picked them up and attacked his hair. She worked on it for about half a minute before she talked again.

"So, 'ow are you feeling," Fleur asked trimming some hair near his left ear.

"Shouldn't you be asking Sirius that," said Cyrano patiently sitting.

"I'm talking about your 'eadaches," Fleur said. Cyrano jerked slightly.

"What headaches," Cyrano said innocently, or tried to.

"Don't play stupid with me, you asked Kate for something to dull a "small 'eadache" as you put it. Sense zen I've noticed you flinching and rubbing your temples, do zey hurt much," Fleur asked as she moved slightly to clip another piece of rogue hair.

"They could be worse," Cyrano gave in.

"When did zey start," said Fleur.

"About the time I got here," Cyrano said brushing a small clump of hair off his shoulder," but I think it's just from stress, you know. After learning that the Ministry of Magic, minus Fudge and a couple others, doesn't believe me, then my godfather is going to his best-friend's murderer's trial and could possibly still be handed over to the Dementors despite him being innocent, it's kind of strenuous."

"Zere, finished," Fleur said, putting gown the scissors.

"Thanks," Cyrano brushed some more scraps of hair off his shoulders. Cyrano heard footsteps and several people entered the kitchen.

"... And I'll have to tell Dumbledore I can't do night duty tomorrow, I'm just too tired, " Tonks was finished telling Miles, who was coming in behind her.

"I'll cover for you, " said Miles, "I'm OK, I've got a report to finish anyway."

"Hello you two. Couldn't sleep, Cy," Kate had come in after her husband. Fleur sat down next to Tonks and began conversing with her.

"No, not really," Cyrano said seeing if anyone else was coming in.

Do you want anything, Cy" asked. "Porridge? Muffins? Kippers? Bacon and eggs? Toast?"

"Toast is find, thanks Kate," Cyrano turned to Tonks about to ask her something when Sirius walked in. He looked about the same as Cyrano had before his shower. He was pale and he had dark bags under his eyes. His hair needed a comb, or even, as Cyrano had done, a hair cut. He was wearing a black suit with a red tie.

"Hello." Sirius didn't move, the room was quiet.

"Come on, Sirius, have some breakfast," Cyrano patted the seat net to him. His godfather crossed the kitchen and sat down, but when Kate asked what he would like too eat, he refused.

"I can't think to eat right now," Sirius said, watching Cyrano take the toast offered by Kate.

"Don't worry, Sirius," said Miles, " I was talking to Dumbledore and he said Amelia Bones would be the one to question you, she's fair."

"How are you getting there," Cyrano said, he had never thought of it.

"Kingsley and Tonks are going to "escort" me into the Ministry," Sirius growled. By the sound of it, he didn't like the way they were going to do it. Cyrano looked over at Tonks, she was avoiding her cousins eyes.

"Precisely, how are they gong to d it," Cyrano asked slowly, afraid that he was broaching a touchy subject.

"They'll bring me in under...restraints," Sirius said with the same growl as before. Cyrano decided not t go any further into the subject.

"I think we'll go now, " Tonks said finally after a time, "Kingsley will be meeting us where you, Cyrano, leave us."

They left the kitchen and entered the hallway. Fleur didn't follow them, she only stood and watched them stepped out the front door and into the open air. Sirius breathe in deeply, acting as though he had not had any in a long time, or perhaps, acting as though he would never receive fresh air again. Sirius was able to walk in the open, as he would being judged at Peter's trial, he needn't be afraid of being attacked. The group walked in silence. It was made up of Tonks, Sirius, Cyrano and Miles. Miles was there so Cyrano wasn't left unguarded after Sirius and Tonks departed.

It was to sunny for what was to take place that day, or at least that was Cyrano's opinion. Sirius was making the most of it. He transformed into a black dog five minutes after they left and ran around, chasing birds when they got close to him. Cyrano grinned at the site, he found it strange that his godfather, some 25 or 30 years older than him, had more energy then he did. It wasn't long before Sirius fell into stride with Cyrano and not much longer after that morphed back into his regular self.

They came to a corner not far from a underground subway entrance. Standing there was a tall, bald black man who wore a single gold hoop in his ear, Cyrano guessed this was Kingsley as he looked to be the owner of the deep voice he had heard on occasion, but never glimpsed him. He focused his attention on Tonks as they approached.

"I thought Dumbledore said Odion wasn't accompanying Sirius," the black man asked, this confirmed Cyrano's suspicions of the man.

"He's not," Sirius said rather moodily, " he's only coming this far, so if I could have a moment with my godson." Sirius grabbed Cyrano by the shoulders and pulled me a couple meters away. Sirius turned to Cyrano and placed his hands on Cyrano's shoulders, they were gripping rather tight.

"So this is were you leave me Cy," Sirius started shakily, "If I don't return,-"

"Sirius, stop, your'e going to be-"

"No! Let me finish. IF I still get handed over to the Dementors, don't do anything rash, just except it and move on," Sirius continued, "Keep your focus on taking out You-Know-Who."

"That would be a little more easier if I was part of the Order; unfortunately it has an age restriction, so I'm not going to be much use," Cyrano grimaced.

"You have a big part in the fight against You-Know-Who, you just don't know it yet," Sirius said. He sighed and then said, "Besides, I find that it isn't time that determines your age, it's your experiences. After being in Azkaban, I feel like I was stuck in time, not aging, not changing. The experience of that horrible place made me realize I have experienced very little. If what I just said was true, you'd outstrip me in age by years. Just remember that."

Sirius embraced Cyrano.

"I'll be waiting," Cyrano said trying to reassure himself.

"We'll be back in a jiff," Sirius said as he let go.. They rejoined the two aurors.

"Don't worry Odion, will get Sirius back alive," Kingsley said.

"Thanks Kingsley," Cyrano said. Miles came to stand by him as Tonks and Kingsley walked on either side of Sirius. They wouldn't put the restraints on him until they got close to the Ministry.

"Come on, Cy," Miles said. They walked a little quicker back than they had walking there. As soon as they got back to Grimmauld Place, Cyrano went to check on Buckbeak. Jonathan and Morgan weren't up yet and Cyrano was thankful for it. He needed to be alone. When he reached the master bedroom, he lit a candle on entry, bowed to the hippogriff, and stroked Buckbeaks feathers.

Though he wanted nothing more than push away the thoughts of Sirius, they were stuck in his mind. He didn't want to dwell on Sirius's fate, but he did. It was driving him crazy. Sirius had a chance and his chance was much better than Wormtails, but if it was true that he still could be sentenced to the Dementors Kiss, Cyrano would disobey Sirius's request. He pulled out the gold locket, he did this more out of routine than interest. He hadn't tried it on since the first time he had done so, and would probably never do it again. The locket twirled on its chain and caught the flame's light.

Darkness and pain was all he knew for seconds, if it had to do with the connection between him and Voldemort, it was like nothing he had ever experienced before. An image appeared. It was an office, he was not familiar with the place, but he knew the people that were in it. Fudge was standing behind the desk that was placed in the center of the room, his face was red. Dumbledore was also standing, but his stance was more relaxed. Fudge seemed to be upset.

"...trial is a perfect opportunity to make them realize he's back, Dumbledore. Can't you see that. Of all people, I thought you would be the most persistent in making You-Know-Who's return known," Fudge said, he looked a little winded.

"I am, but it must come some other way, Cornelius. I have told you before that if you were to be the one announcing such a thing, you would lose your position within a week and we need you here," Dumbledore said calmly. This seemed to make Fudge furious.

"But-," Fudge started, Dumbledore held up a hand to silence him.

"If you had refused the truth before, than, perhaps, I would have insisted, but you hold power in the Ministry and we will undoubtedly need that later. Besides, we cannot risk you being removed and one of Voldemort's - Fudge flinched - men being made Minister."

"So you believe he as infiltrated the Ministry," Fudge asked looking at Dumbledore.

"I don't believe," Dumbledore said, Fudge sighed, " I know. Cyrano mentioned a few names after the third task - Fudge stirred to say something, but was cut off - but it is best they are left unnamed for know, we might yet gain information from them."

Fudge turned away from Dumbledore, he rubbed the sides of his head.

"Dumbledore, I cannot protect the community unless I know details. All I get from you is more riddles."

Dumbledore sighed, " It is difficult, and yes perhaps I withhold a bit from those who deserve to know, but in order for Voldemort - Fudge flinched again - to believe that we are caught unaware, we must make it look so. The Ministry has done most of the work, it was by no accident that the rumor started spreading about his return. He is lying low for know, but there is something he is trying to get and if he does, it could end up worse than fifteen years ago."

"What is it that he is trying to get," Fudge asked looking around interested.

"Something that involves the boy," Dumbledore said quietly. A short silence fell upon the room.

"Does he know," said Fudge.

"No, it is a secret to him. I dare say that out of all people I owe him the most explanations. He will come to face a choice and not an easy one to make. However, he has a few secrets of his own. Someone has been in contact with him, they have him searching for something, but to what it is, I have no clue."

"This has to do with Wales, doesn't it? The boy who cast the dragon patronus?"

"Oh, it was him and you know that. What you don't know is why the Dementors attacked him. Even I don't know that, but you can take a guess that it was someone in the Ministry."

"This person he's been in contact with, do you know who they are?"

"No, but I believe he has been talking with them for a while. The scale he had last year, the one he used in the second task, he would never have found it in any shop. It's from an Aqua draconian, and, as you know, they vanished when the whole species did. Whoever had it originally is from an old family and is either related to him or has taking a liking to him. Either way, there are other forces out there that could change the tide of the coming war. Forces that are higher than any wizard," Dumbledore waved his hand as if to dismiss the matter.

"I can understa-," Fudge stopped half way through a word, someone had knocked on the door. Both Dumbledore and the Minister turned to see a figure entering. The figure was just out of site, but he could hear the persons voice.

"The court is ready, Minister," a high girlish voice said.

"Yes, we'll be right there, Dolores," Fudge said with a dismissive tone. The person left and Dumbledore turned back to Fudge.

"Minister, are you sure you can not overrule the governors' ruling?"

"I am sorry Albus, but the school governors appointed her as the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor, I can do nothing about it. Besides you were already struggling to find someone to fill the position. They made it easier on you when the appointed her," said Fudge as he grabbed a stack of papers and walked around the desk.

"No, I have a feeling she will cause great deal of grief. The governors chose her because she would report back with unquestioned faith," Dumbledore sighed as he followed Fudge out of his office, "They are looking for ways to unseat me from Hogwarts. I will have to watch how I move around from now on. I don't want to give them a reason to remove me from the school." Cyrano watched as Dumbledore closed the door behind him. It went dark when the door snapped shut and Cyrano experienced the darkness once more. This was followed by extreme pain in his head.

The headache he had was major, not like the small ones he had been having. It was head-splitting. Cyrano stumbled to his feet and used the wall to support himself as he moved towards the bathroom. Once there, he turned on the faucet and splashed cold water on his face. After a few minutes the pain started to recede, Cyrano sat on the age of the tub and put his head into his hands.

Cyrano did not know if what he had just witnessed was real, so he could only guess to what was happening. Cyrano didn't understand, he had a feeling that his dreams and this...vision, were somehow connected, he was becoming terrified. But who could he turn to, not Dumbledore, he doubted if Dumbledore knew what was happening, and he wasn't about to tell him he had seen something that might have actually happened. He could ask Merlin, but was not sure if Merlin would answer his call. He was alone, his only option, for the time, was to keep quiet. The only problem he was going to have with that, was that people were watching him, especially Fleur, who would be basically his, though Dumbledore did not use the same word, bodyguard.

He had learned things he doubted he would have learned from Order members, of course, that depended if what had just happened was real. If it was it explained a few things. Well, mostly just one and it didn't even explain it, but he did learn that whatever the Order was guarding it had to deal with him. The only question was what could it be? Was it possible that the Ministry had some item of Merlin's? Cyrano doubted it as Merlin had disappeared long before the Ministry Had been established. No, whatever they had it was more recent, but what?

"Cyrano," Kate called from somewhere below, "were starting on the study today."

"Coming," Cyrano called. He dried his face and left the small bathroom. The rest of the day was uneventful, as it would take sometime for Pettigrew's trial to be gone through and review Sirius's own sentence. The study was, probably, the dustiest room in the house. It hadn't attracted any creatures, which everyone was thankful for, but in no time everyone was sneezing. There were a good many books, most of them in different languages. The ones that were in English were all bout the Black family, so there wasn't much interest in them. However, Cyrano found, to his surprise, a book on draconians. He slipped it away when Kate's back was turned. He knew enough about his ancestors, but found it exciting when he learned more.

Sirius returned just after noon. He was pale and shacking, but evidently was in a lot better shape than he had been for the last 14 years. Cyrano gave him a quick embrace and said: "I told you, didn't I!"

"I have to give most of the credit to Dumbledore, though, I think I might have collapsed if he hadn't been there to lead me through what we had talked about," Sirius said as the traveled from the hallway into the kitchen. He sat down at the table. Cyrano sat down cross from him. Kate started to move around the kitchen to start lunch.

"So, where is everyone," Sirius asked.

"Jonathans probably in the study, we just cleaned it today so he likely found things of interest. Morgans with Fleur, I think, talking about whatever girls talk about," Cyrano said. He thought maybe Sirius was a little downcast that nobody had come besides Cyrano, but he didn't look it. In fact, Cyrano thought Sirius looked happy that it was just the two of them.

"Have any plans now that your free of your chains," asked Cyrano leaning back in his chair.

"Well, first I think I need to get out of this place. I'll buy a nice small house somewhere secluded. Then I want to get my own wand," Sirius said holding out the one he was using.

"What's wrong with the one that your using," said Cyrano.

"It was my uncle's wand, you know the one I told you left me some money, it was supposed to end up with me originally, but some how my mother kept a hold of it," Sirius said with a evil glance in the direction his mother's portrait that was through the wall, "Of course, if she hadn't, it would have been taken like the rest of my stuff had and I wouldn't be using it right know. However, the wand has never really worked as I think it should, so a new wand would be good."

"What about other aspects of your life," Cyrano said witha grin.

"What are you talking about," Sirius asked cautiously.

"Sirius, please, I cannot imagine you having wanted to be alone all your life," Cyrano said.

"Oh, please," Sirius exclaimed with irritation, but he was smiling, "Seriously, can you imagine me being with someone, Cy. True, I guess when I was younger I was always trying to impress some girl, but that was a long time ago. I guess there might be a possibility that some woman out there would take an interest in a man who was once a convict, but the possibility that I would meet that person is very slim."

Cyrano only grinned. Truly, he had never thought of Sirius finding someone to live his life with, but he brought it up because now he could image it. They changed the subject after that.

"Sirius," Cyrano said, he wasn't exactly sure what he was about to do, "What is it exactly Voldemort is trying to get?"

Sirius didn't move, he just stared at Cyrano, unblinking.

"It has to do with me doesn't it, Cyrano continued quietly, "You don't have to play dumb with me. You all know don't you, the whole Order. All I know is that if Voldemort gets it, everything will go to hell." Sirius hesitated a fraction of a second before answering Cyrano.

"Cy, yes, it does have something to do with you, but its complicated. I could tell you, but I swore an oath to Dumbledore when I joined the Order. What I can say without breaking my oath is that it is still missing a variable," Sirius said as low as possible, Kate was passing by, " You don't have to worry about it though, at least not yet."

"If I don't have to worry about it than why are you trying to protect it from Voldemort? Shouldn't I worry about that if Voldemort gets it everything will get worse? Your giving me answers that Dumbledore would give. I respect that man with all his years, but he holds to much back." Sirius looked like he was about to bust, he just shook his head.

"I can't tell you, I'm sorry." Kate finished with lunch and they ate without talking for the rest of the time. Everyone came then and congratulated Sirius, the rest of the day was spent talking about the upcoming school term. They hadn't received the book lists yet and Jonathan was nearly having a heart attack about it. Cyrano refrained from mentioning, for the moment, the new Defense Against the Dark Arts professor as it would look very strange that he knew before anyone else did.

Author's Note: Well, that chapter gave a little bit of insight. It was a bit shorter just because of the little things I could come up for it.


	5. Meetings and Secrets

Author Note: Okay. Finally, the chapter that Cyrano joins the Order and Dumbledore tells him what his mission is.

The month had rolled down to the last week and Cyrano couldn't wait to get back to Hogwarts. It was Saturday morning and Cyrano found that he couldn't stand the house any longer. Fleur and the twins were the only light in the gloom. Jack and Blake could be counted if you wanted to be pranked every other day. Sirius had taken to living the house for several hours. Cyrano and Fleur were in the study, she was explaining how it would work with her going to Hogwarts for her last year.

"Dumbledore told me zat I would be unofficially entered. I will be given my own room and I'll 'ave private classes," Fleur explained well Cyrano looked over the book he had found.

"Isn't that a small draw back than how you were doing in Beauxbatons amd what about your friends," Cyrano said as he translated another sentence from the book. It was in Latin, which he had no clue how to read it.

"Maybe a little and zey'll do fine without me, but I did zis to help you, to protect you. Zat is the most important thing," Fleur said lightly. Cyrano was hardly paying attention. He was too absorbed in the book to take in anything.

"Yeah, you may be thinking you're here to protect me, but your father made me promise to watch you as well. So, I wouldn't say your here to protect me, your here so I can protect you," Cyrano said looking up with a grin. Fleur smiled slightly.

"Call it what you will, your still ze most important person 'ere and your back will need to be protected," Fleur said.

"Eh," was all that Cyrano managed.

"Zere's a meeting tomorrow," Fleur said without warning. Cyrano's actions slowed for half a second as he dipped his quill into an ink well.

"So," he said as he picked up the pace again in his movements.

"'Ave you gained any 'eadway on the zing Dumbledore set you on," Fleur asked casually. Cyrano could see past her tone, though.

"If you're trying to ask if I'll be joining the Order anytime soon, the answer is no. I looked and thought, but I've come up with nothing. At any rate there are other things that I can focus on," Cyrano said as he looked up a word.

"What are you doing," Fleur asked changing the conversation, obviously not happy.

"Translating this book, which I cannot read for the life of me because it's in Latin," Cyrano said writing down a newly translated sentence.

"I zought you learn Latin when your taught spells," Fleur said.

"We are, but not as much as you think. For instance, I can spot the word 'light' because I know the spell Lumos, but there are others I don't know."

"What's it about," Fleur inquired.

"What? The book, well, you know...my other half," Cyrano said quietly.

"Find anything interesting?"

"Mostly things I already knew. You know, my ability to throw of most spells that effect the mind, my obvious transformation, nothing new. But I just came up on this chapter about their rites and culture, so it should be some new insight," Cyrano told her. She leaned forward to look at the paper he had translated on. The bracelet on her right hand caught the light and shown in his eyes. Cyrano flinched backward, out of pain and fear that it would set off another vision, or dream, or whatever they were. Fleur would have had to be facing away not to notice.

"'Eadaches still," she said frowning.

"Their nothing I reckon, and if they are I'll be back at Hogwarts in two days. If I need to, I'll just go see Pomfrey," Cyrano said trying to lessen Fleur's obvious worry.

"Maybe you should-"

"Tell Dumbledore," Cyrano interrupted, "I don't want to be wasting his time with some small headaches."

"Cyrano, with you, nothing can ever just be put aside," Fleur stated.

"There headaches, what else is there to be seen about it except for cranium pressure," Cyrano demanded.

"Zere's more, isn't zere," Fleur asked lifting an eyebrow. Cyrano didn't answer, he only sat there looking at the silver haired witch. He rolled the quill between his fingers. Fleur continued to talk, "Fine, I can figure zings out on my own." Fleur pushed herself out of her chair and walked to the door. Cyrano was going to call her back, but he didn't have anything to offer her. He wasn't going to tell her about the dreams, so he just let her leave.

The rest of the day passed by uneventful and soon Cyrano found himself waking up to a Sunday morning. At breakfast everyone was in a buzz. Jonathan was still freaking out about the book lists.

"They should have been here ages ago," Jonathan insisted.

"Dumbledore probably thought as you are here, won't have trouble getting what you need at the last minute," Lupin said. Sirius was talking quietly with Brian halfway across the table. Fleur and Morgan were also talking quietly far from Cyrano and they kept glancing in his direction. No doubt Fleur was recruiting Morgan for spying on him, looking for something that might be causing his headaches. The flutter of wings and Jonathan letting off a huge sigh told Cyrano that the owls containing their book lists had finally come. He took his own letter, which was passed down by Fleur, and opened it.

"Only two new ones," he said, reading the list, "The Standard Book of Spells: Grade 5, by Miranda Goshawk, and Defensive Magical Theory by Wilbert Slinkhard."

"Defensive Magical Theory," Jonathan said confused, "That book is ancient and it doesn't even have any spells in it. Who in Merlin's beard is the new Defense teacher. Sorry, Cy." Cyrano had discouraged the use such phrases as "Merlin's beard", more because Merlin didn't like them than because he didn't like them.

"I think it's someone by the name of Dolores," Cyrano said not even thinking about it. When he noticed people were silent he looked up. Everyone was watching him, he had slipped up and had no reason to have known before the others," Dumbledore mentioned it I think, he didn't seem to be too happy about it."

"That would make sense," Sirius snorted, "Dolores Umbirdge, if that's the one, is a witch, and I don't say that as a compliment. She tried causing trouble for me at Peter's trial. I can tell you that I took pleasure when Dumbledore was able to sway the whole court, I can also tell you she didn't look happy."

"Wait, Umbridge," Jonathan said his eyes screwed up in thought, "She was the one asking me questions when I registered as a werewolf. I didn't like the look of her."

"Most don't," Lupin said, "She's notorious for her hate towards what she calls "half-breeds."

"Why would he choose someone like her," this was Morgan.

"Oh, Dumbledore probably didn't get a say in the matter. No, it was probably the school governors. They want someone who can report back to them. It isn't a secret that Fudge has been talking with Dumbledore, the governors think that Fudge can't be trusted and are taking matters into their own hands."

"But what would she report back on, how well Dumbledore is running the school," Morgan asked.

"No. They want to know what Dumbledore is up to, and this is a good way from keeping you to train in combat," Sirius said. He was staring at Cyrano, who knew exactly what Sirius meant.

"They think Dumbledore would use us as an army," Cyrano said half paying attention, half loosing himself in thought.

"Exactly."

"No one in their right mind would-," Jonathan started, but was cut off by Sirius.

"Ah, see though, a lot of people aren't in their right mind at the moment. All they know is that Dumbledore has claimed the Who-Know-Know is back and that the Ministry is standing undecided. Sense no one wants Who-Know-Who to be back, their all pushing for Fudge to come out publicly that it is a lie."

"Which he won't do," Cyrano said.

"No, god no. If he did I don't think I could trust him anymore," Lupin said. Cyrano thought the same thing.

"You lot better go pack," Kate said bustling into the kitchen," give me your lists and I'll pick up your school-" Kate was interrupted from a screech of a new owl. It flew over Jonathan and dropped an envelope, it did the same to Morgan. Both letters hit the table with a clunk. The twins simultaneously picked up the envelops and opened them. Something that glinted slipped out of Jonathan's and he stooped to pick it up. He was slow coming up though, whatever he had gotten he wasn't expecting.

"What is it dear," Kate asked. Jonathan stood up a held out his palm. In the center of his hand lay a Griffyndor Prefect's badge. Morgan had also received one as well. Kate was so overwhelmed she was nearly in tears. And to keep from bursting into a watery mess, she quickly hugged her children and left.

"Well that was a bit awkward," Jonathan said as they climb the stairs to their room ten minutes later. Lupin and Sirius had taken sometime in congratulating them, "I've never seen mum so worked up from something so little." Cyrano wasn't even listening. He was cursing and arguing with himself all at the same time.

What would he have expected? Not this, said a small and truthful voice inside his head. Did he think himself superior to everyone else? Did he really believe he was better than either Morgan or Jonathan? No, said the small voice defiantly. In truth he knew he wouldn't have accepted it, he had too many things to worry about already. He zoned back in on Jonathan's talking.

"I had actually expected you to get one, Cy," Jonathan was saying, "Don't tell her, but truthfully I didn't think Morgan ever had a chance to get one."

"Don't worry, she'll never hear it from me. Anyway, I don't think I could except such a responsibility," Cyrano said resting his thoughts with the sentence. The packed everything that they had and Cyrano cleaned out Archimedes cage. Kate brought back the books and said that they would have a congratulation party after the Order meeting. Cyrano immediately withdrew from everyone to the study where he left his book. He sat down and began translating it once more.

His mind hadn't been put at rest as he thought it had.

_They didn't fight Quirrell with me. They didn't take on Riddle and the Basilisk. They didn't get rid of all those Dementors the night Sirius escaped. They weren't in that graveyard with me, the night Voldemort returned. Didn't Sirius say that age was based more on experience than how many years you lived._

He felt sick at what he thought as he wrote down the next sentence in the book. Jonathan had taken the bite for him, if he hadn't Cyrano would be in bad shape. He down at the paper he had in front of him. It was then that two things clicked in his mind. He jumped up, grabbing the papers in front of him, and rushed out of the room. He took the steps two at a time and threw his weight against the kitchen door as he turned the doorknob. He stumbled into the room.

Dumbledore was sitting at the head of the table like he had a few weeks before. Sirius and Fleur were sitting on the right of the headmaster. Lupin, Moody, and Kingsley were sitting on the left. Miles and Kate were sitting nearest to the door. To Cyrano's great displeasure Snape was standing behind Dumbledore. There were a few others that he didn't know, but his eyes focused on someone he hadn't expected to be there. Mr. Delacour was sitting next to Brian. Cyrano and Alan both nodded heads in recognition. Then he focused his attention back onto Dumbledore. Snape was the first to recover.

"Odion! What do you think you are you doing? This is a meeting of the Order, a group in which you do not belong," Snape sneered. Cyrano anger flared.

"Not yet," Cyrano snapped. Many people seemed to take notice in the comment. Snape seemed to be getting ready to speak again, but Dumbledore stopped him. Cyrano was still glaring coldly at Snape when Dumbledore spoke.

"You have something to say, Cyrano."

"Yes sir. I wish to join the Order of the Phoenix," Cyrano said patiently. He glance quickly at Fleur, who's expression was betraying no emotion. Many people began to speak, but, once again, Dumbledore silenced them.

"You think you've found the way I mentioned," Dumbledore said calmly. Many people took notice at that, especially Kate.

"What are you talking about," she said switching her dumbfounded gaze back and forth between the two of them. She was ignored.

"Actually I found both ways you referred to," Cyrano said. Kate finally managed to get a word in.

"Please, Dumbledore you can't actually think about recruiting him. He's only a boy," Kate argued. Cyrano had always known her to be a fair woman, but apparently when a Dark Lord rises from the dead and threatens to kill you, she changes fast.

"Kate, Cyrano has the right. He has faced Voldemort three times already, I'd say he has more of a right than you," this was Moody. He seemed to have decided that Cyrano was a competent wizard.

"Would you please explain what you found, Cyrano," Dumbledore asked politely.

"The first way I found was purely this: I have more experience than most of you. Sirius told me himself that age is more based of experience than time. For what use is a longer time on this planet if you don't have the experience to back it up with. That was the first way I found. Then there is the second," Cyrano looked down at the sheets of paper he had in his hand becoming very nervous.

"Are you sure you want to do this Cyrano," Dumbledore asked quietly. Cyrano nodded, summoning the courage he needed to do this. It wasn't easy; he had been hiding it for so long, and now...

"I'm sure. You all know that I have secrets, everyone does. But there is one I've been keeping from nearly everyone. I only figured out about it in my second year, but it's always been with me," Cyrano said his courage building every second, "This same secret saved me from being killed last year by the Horntail. It helped me in the second task, only that wasn't entirely me. It is also part of the reason my patronus is a dragon." Cyrano was aware that the room had gone deathly quiet; everyone's gaze was on him.

"I would tell you, but I think you'd hardly believe me. So, I'm going to show you," Cyrano finished by stepping away and he just let his control go.

It flooded out, like a damn breaking and a river being let go. His skin paled to a light blue and he shot up a couple of inches. Shredding of clothes was heard as a pair of leathery wings sprouted from his back, the wing span was around 15 feet. His face became more angular. Scales split through the skin in several places: the bridge of his nose, around his eyes, across his chest, down his back, along his forearms, and on his hands. His canine teeth doubled their length and the others became pointed. His eyes became slits and partially changed color, the iris staid grey near the pupils (which were now vertical like a cat's), but as they reached the edge faded into an ice blue. His hands became nimble and his nails sharpened and thickened, they now resembled talons. Out of instinct he let out a roar that sounded half human and half dragon.

The whole room acted in an instant. Moody had jumped to his feet and had drawn his wand before anyone else were one they're feet. Sirius and Lupin had also come to their feet, but had resisted the impulse to reach for their wands. Others were scrambling away, some, like Mundungus, had dropped to the floor. Dumbledore was trying to restore order. Snape had barely reacted, he had winced when Cyrano had bellowed, but nothing more. The only person who had not reacted quiet the same was Brian. He had not flinched or stood up; in fact he was laughing hard, the echo of his deep laughter resonating around the room. Finally order was restored. Despite proving his point, Cyrano stayed the way he was. He had been hiding it so long, he felt freer in this form.

"And when then ruddy hell did you learn about this," Moody growled at Dumbledore. He had refused to retake his seat, his hand never more than a foot from where his wand was hidden.

"The same year Cyrano did," Dumbledore answered. People started throwing out questions, Dumbledore silenced them again, "Please, one at a time."

"How many knew before now," asked Sirius, he wasn't looking at Cyrano.

"I did," Mr. Delacour said, "'E saved my daughter's life, so I was bent on repaying 'im. I 'ad an idea zat 'e wasn't fully...human, for a lack of a better word. I knew exactly what 'e was when 'e asked for a certain document."

"What document," Lupin inquired.

"A document considering my ancestry," Cyrano spoke for the first time after his transformation. His voice was deeper than usual and the damage to his vocal chords made him sound rather menacing.

"You mean Merlin," said Lupin.

"No, I mean the ancestors that made me what I am."

Kate's voice sounded far off," And what exactly are you?"

"I am part draconian by my mother's side."

Cyrano swore he could have heard a pin drop if one had dropped.

"But Lily was muggleborn," Lupin said, he seemed not to be too much affected by the strange happenings.

"Lupin, I thought you would be smart enough to know that if you go back far enough everyone has a magical ancestor," Cyrano said his gaze connecting with the werewolf's, "After all I am also Merlin's Heir by my mother's side. Back to Sirius's question, Jonathan also knew, he was there the first time I transformed. Lockhart was about remove our memories, I transformed in defense, Lockhart, well, lost his memory when the spell rebounded."

"Why did the spell rebound," Moody asked, taking a sudden interest in the conversation.

"Draconians have this ability that their born with, they can throw off spells that affect the mind. That's why when Barty Crouch Jr. tried to put the Imperious Curse on me in class, it didn't affect me, same as when Voldemort,_ it's just a goddamned name_, tried to do it in the graveyard. Anyhow, Fleur knew as well, she was there when I transformed in the graveyard to protect her - Mr. Delacour shifted slightly - Voldemort. There are two others as well, but they are too hard to explain, so I won't tell you who they are."

"And what does this have to do with you joining the Order," Kate demanded, regaining her form.

"This words - he held up the sheets of paper he had brought with him, they were now slightly crumpled - come straight from a book that was written right before the species vanished. The clue to that is that it was written in Latin," Cyrano started reading from the paper, he only needed a few sentences: "_'Though very similar, Draconians and humans have their differences. One such obvious difference is the draconians rate of aging. When a draconian is about twelve by human years, they have truly matured to the age of a sixteen year old.'_ I am actually twenty by the standards of the draconian race. And by law, any organization must take in account of the aging process if a person is part of a different race." No one spoke, Dumbledore beamed around the room.

"Very well, if there are no arguments, I think we can -," Dumbledore started, Kate interrupted.

"What about his schooling. Won't it be pretty obvious he's disappearing every once and a while from school?"

"I have a solution for that, but it must wait until after Cyrano is sworn in. Are you ready Cyrano?"

"Yes," Cyrano answered.

"Then come, have a seat next to me and cross your wand with mine," Dumbledore said drawing his wand to summon a chair. Cyrano did as he was told and repeated these words:

"I, Cyrano Odion, hereby swear my allegiance to the Order of the Phoenix. With this I honor the purity of this Order and its purpose. I also understand that I give myself to fight to the Death against forces unknown to help save the future of our Wizarding World. I also understand that treason against such an honorable group will result in consequences unknown. I now declare myself a member of the Order of the Phoenix founded by the dignified Albus Dumbledore."

And with that, sparks of white shot out of Dumbledore's wand and pale blue shot from Cyrano's.

"So, what was this solution of yours," Cyrano asked.

"I mentioned that I wanted you to do something last summer, before term ended. As you're going back to school, there is no doubt that you will not be able to join in Order meetings. However, there is a way you can help us. It is plain and clear that we we'll need help on our side of the battle, so I have a proposal. I need you to find and contact the draconians." Cyrano opened and closed his mouth several times before managing to get out a few words.

"But...I don't...I don't know if there's away. Bloody hell, I don't even know where they could be," Cyrano exclaimed.

"Oh, I have faith in you that you'll find a way, you've found ways to do extraordinary things in the past when it was needed. Besides, we'll need the help. I've already sent Hagrid out to talk to the giants," Dumbledore said beaming at him.

"So that was the mission Hagrid was talking about!"

"Yes. Lupin is also doing the same, he'll be infiltrating a werewolf pack and try to persuade some to join us," Dumbledore explained. Lupin looked a little uneasy.

"I guess I have no choice, but to try," Cyrano said gaining courage from those who were already doing something like he was.

"Try you will and you will succeed, like I said, you always find a way," Dumbledore said with a grin and a twinkle in his eye.

The rest of the meeting was spent talking about which groups Voldemort would try and recruit. Dementors were the first on the list as they would have already agreed. Werewolves were leaning towards Voldemort, but Lupin thought maybe he could persuade a few if not the whole pack he was going undercover in. Hagrid hadn't reported back about the giants yet. Mr. Delacour stated that he could grab some recruits from France, after all the war would reach across the world. The conversation briefly touched upon a patrolling duty, but the way the other members refrained from mentioning exactly what the were patrolling gave Cyrano a suspicious feeling that it had to do with the object Voldemort was trying to get.

After the meeting was over, people disappeared fast without a word. Cyrano was sure that some were still a little shaken from his performance At least he knew no one was going to blab about him as Dumbledore had made them swear no one would reveal his secret. Brian stopped quickly to talk to Cyrano, he was interested in learning more about Cyrano's particular situation. In truth he seemed to hold more respect towards Cyrano now, perhaps he had before, but Cyrano wasn't sure. Cyrano promised they would talk at a better time. One person he had seen not seen before in the crowd was the old wand maker, Ollivander.

"Ah, Mr. Odion, I must say that I wasn't much surprised," Ollivander said as he saw Cyrano approaching. Cyrano assumed he meant about he's transformation

"Why is that," asked Cyrano as he stopped in front of the old man.

"Hmm, oh, I think that the best way to explain this if I tell you a little more about your wand," Ollivander said, holding Cyrano's grey eyes with his black ones. They were the only ones that ever made Cyrano revert his gaze.

"There's more. I thought a destiny of its own was already enough," Cyrano said. Ollivander smiled.

"May I see it," the wand maker asked. Cyrano handed over the strip of oak.

"Still in very find condition, yes," Ollivander said as he inspected the wand, he appeared to do this every time an old creation of his fell into his hands, "See, Mr. Odion, your wand was one of the finest ever made, it's a pity I wasn't there to see it made."

"You weren't?"

"Oh no, that was far before my time," Ollivander said half paying attention as looked the wand up and down.

"So, besides its destiny, what's so special about it," Cyrano asked. Ollivander stopped his inspecting and looked sideways at Cyrano.

"This is a secret that is hardly given out, but this wand is said to be the most powerful wand in the world - Cyrano raised his eyebrows in disbelief - Oh yes. Do you know what they call oak in wand making?"

"No," Cyrano answered truthfully. Cyrano thought he felt eyes, but ignored them.

"They call it Wizard Wood because it is one of the most powerful types of wood in wand making. No one knows why, not even wand makers whose families have been in the business for thousands of years. What we do know is this: as oak ages it's magical properties strengthen thus strengthing the wand when it is made. The oak branch used for your wand came from the supposed oak that ensnares Merlin. By estimation that oak is older fifteen hundred years old and oak wood continues to strengthen even after it is carved into a wand."

"So my wand is a little bit stronger than others," Cyrano stated the obvious.

"Not just a little, your wand outstrips many of my finest. See, because oak so magically in tuned, it has a tendency of messing with the core of the wand," Ollivnader said staring at the wand.

"What do you mean "tendency of messing with the core"?

"Nothing to worry about. It will strengthen the magical properties and such. But in older oak, it is so strong that the wand will cause the core to stretch out magically and try to draw energy from an animal of the same species that gave the core," Ollivander was staring pointedly at Cyrano. It clicked in his mind.

"And because I'm draconian and my wand core is dragon heartstring, it recognizes me as part dragon."

"And further strengthens the wand. I doubt if there is a wand in the world that is more powerful than yours. Well, perhaps Merlin's own, but that is lost beyond the point of return," Ollivander handed Cyrano his wand back over, "Take care of that wand, Mr. Odion, there is no doubt that the wand was made especially for you. Like I said four years ago, I think we can expect great things from you." The old man left. Cyrano looked at his wand, he's life seemed to get more complicated by the day.

"You just get more interesting by ze minute," a voice said. Cyrano turned to see Alan Delacour not, but a few paces from him.

"Tell me about it," Cyrano scoffed, then changed the subject "I didn't think you were part of the Order?"

"I wasn't, I joined only shortly after Fleur did. I decided zat know zat 'e was back no one would be safe, so no point in pretending," Alan said, Cyrano knew what he meant by 'he'.

"What about your wife," Cyrano asked.

"Apolline, she 'as 'ad 'er say of zings. She knows I'm doing what I zink best, so," Alan shrugged, "What I really came to talk to you about was ze document."

"I had a look at it, but I can really do anything until the draconians are found and the Ministry finally pulls itself together," Cyrano said flatly.

"No, zere is no point in trying now, but when it does come to it, I wish to 'elp you in any way possible," Mr. Delacour offered. Cyrano sighed.

"What is with people and offering me help now a days," he exclaimed, "But I suppose you could help with putting together a defense."

"Already 'ave, after all, once draconians are allowed to roam free in Great Britain, France will want to stay in head," Alan smiled, "well I must get going there something's I must attend to. 'Ave a pleasant evening Cyrano."

And it was a pleasant one at that. Jonathan and Morgan were shocked when they learned Cyrano had been accepted into the Order. And as it was, Cyrano transformed in front of Morgan. For one she didn't know yet and Cyrano wanted to see they look on her face, which was priceless as well as the scream that escaped her, and because Cyrano liked the feeling when he became a draconian. They celebrated Morgan and Jonathan becoming Prefects. Only Kate sort of put a damper on it. She had argued with Dumbledore until she had no arguments left, apparently she still felt that Cyrano had no place in the Order. She had stormed away in a fury.

After a time Cyrano realized he felt more tired than he had thought. He slipped away when no one was paying him any attention. He climbed the stairs rubbing his temples, the pain had flared up. Despite all that, though, it didn't put a damper on his sense and reacted as soon as it appeared on the landing above him. A Dementor glided out from the drawing room. Cyrano's wand was out before it had become fully aware of him.

"Dementor," he bellowed, "_Expecto_ _patronum_."

The usual silvery form of a dragon shot out of his wand tip and soared at the Dementor, its wispy talons lunging at the dark creature. Cyrano realized something was wrong when the Dementor wasn't affected by the patronus.

"_Riddikulus_," this was Lupin. The Dementor, or boggart, disappeared and Lupin rushed past Cyrano. Cyrano ran after him, he could hear other people behind him. Lupin entered the drawing room and when Cyrano entered he saw Kate lying unconscious on the floor.

"Is she alright," Cyrano asked concerned.

"She's fine, she only fainted. Apparently she didn't take a fancy in whatever the boggart had turned into. Sirius come help me," Cyrano stepped aside as his godfather crossed the room and wrapped and arm around one side of Kate's shoulder. Cyrano hadn't realized it, but his patronus was still lingering, which was odd because it he wasn't focusing on it anymore. If he hadn't been looking closer he would have missed another thing. The patronus had changed. It was still a welsh-green, but it had grown twice its normal length.

Author's note: Well Cyrano is now part of the Order. On top of that he learned more about his wand and, though he doesn't realize it, his powers are growing. I added the bit about the wand because it will become more important later. Now there is one thing that I have to talk about, I added a bit of it in in this chapter. I went looking around on the Internet looking at websites about wand lore and I finally found one that I thought best (Wizard Wood Guide). Now I was looking at the Zodiac Guide, it tells you what type of wand wood you should have depending on the Zodiac sign you were born under. Now I kept Cyrano's birthday as Harry's just because of laziness, but it said that one type of wood for a Leo, Cyrano's Zodiac sign, was oak. Now I had no idea about this beforehand, but I also found another thing interesting. Oak is actually referred to as the Wizard Wood and is considered to have the strongest magical properties in wand making. Oak is for a guardian and liberator. Now, even more, under the wand core guide it says that Dragon Heartstring makes an excellent companion to woods that feed off the element of fire. Oak ,apparently, though I don't believe elements come into factoring during wand making, draws its strength from fire. So, Cyrano's wand actually worked out very well.


	6. An Awkward Encounter

Author's Note: Not much to explain about this chapter as it basically says it all in the title of it.

Another dream came to him that night. It was hard to see because the only light in, what it appeared to be, the cave was a single torch. Corridors branched off from the small cavity, but nothing could be seen beyond the darkness. The room wasn't large, just a few strides wide from each side. The ground was made up of loose sand and in the middle of the room was a waist-high stone that was flattened to the point that it could have been used as a table, which it currently was.

Five figures stood around the stone, they seemed deep in conversation. However, unlike Cyrano's last "dream", everything he heard sounded like his head had been dunked into a bucket of water. One seemed to be arguing with another. The tallest one was familiar to Cyrano he didn't know how. The figure slowed down and hesitated the same way Cyrano did when he sensed another presence. The figure looked around and then Cyrano realized this had been the figure in the carved out corridor. This time he caught the features of the the man.

He had very pale skin, his hair was cut short, and he wore what seemed to be leather armor on his chest. He had a short sword at his side. he picked out other peculiar features of this character. Like the fact that his face was far more angular than any human ever wished to have. In fact the other figures in the room seemed to have the same characteristics, the only exception was the female who's hair was longer, though only down to the shoulders.

The man returned to arguing he had seemed to come up with something new to argue with. A shorter man, the one the taller man was arguing with, was brick-red in the face. They group continued to argue back and forth. The female and another male companion seemed to be taking sides with the taller man. The last person was taking no part of the argument, in fact it seemed he was hardly listening at all. They left abruptly, the shorter man calling angrily after the trio.

The dream seemed to follow the tall one, which Cyrano, in his conscious mind, took note that he had an air about him of a leader, he had seen battles as well. The companions talked quickly and quietly as they walked through a maze of corridors. When they reached a split in the hallways, they stopped at a split and the leader gave some kind of order and they went off in different directions. That was when darkness prevailed the vision and Cyrano woke up.

The headache was the same as before. Cyrano stumbled, he was amazed that he hadn't woken anyone else up, to the bathroom. It took a bit longer for the headache to disappear and until that happened, he could not recall any of the dream. Once it started coming back to him, he remember words despite the fact he had never heard any of them speak through the whole thing. The phrases and words contained things like "calling" and "one of our own", but Cyrano could not make heads or tails of it. Funny thing was. though, that the words had an echo to it like they weren't in English, but that's how Cyrano recognized them.

Cyrano stumbled out of the bathroom still a little dazed from his headache. He crept his way back to the room he and Jonathan shared. He got dressed as fast as he possible could at four in the morning. He had thought about going back to bed, but decided he would be up in a few hours anyway.

As he dressed he ran through what happened the previous night. He was now part of a secret organization that fought against the man who murdered his parents. Not only that, he revealed what he was to a room of wizards and witches, many of which served in the Ministry and he was on a quest to find the draconians because they would probably need their help in the future. He was getting buried deep in problems and worries that he didn't have any solutions to, as of yet.

"Restful sleep," a voice said from the corner of the room, a very unfamiliar voice. Cyrano whipped around with his wand in his hand before his eyes even found the direction the voice had come from. It came from the empty portrait on the wall. However, now it wasn't empty. A clever-looking wizard with a pointed beard, who had been painted wearing the Slytherin colors of green and silver now occupied the frame, "Sir Phineas Nigellus, a previous headmaster of Hogwarts."

"And your here why," Cyrano asked storing his wand in his pocket.

"Hmm,...Oh, yes, Dumbledore wants you to know that he has decided you are in need of a certain type of training. He will explain it more once he has the time, but he wanted to warn you beforehand," Phineas said, yawning.

"Is that all," Cyrano asked wandering what this training entitled, but decided, as it didn't matter at the time, that he would put it out of his mind.

"I believe so. It is remarkable, I imagined an Heir of Merlin to seem more powerful."

Cyrano transformed in front of him and let out a hiss, baring his fangs. Phineas seemed not to be surprised. He only shrugged and said, "I've seen better performances in the past." The old wizard sidled out of the picture. Thankfully Cyrano hadn't had a shirt on at the time, so he didn't need to take the time to repair his shirt. When he was done he left the room and went to the study.

It was dark in the room, but he didn't bother lighting a candle. He just found a seat somewhere in the room and rested his body. He felt amazingly tired for being so awake. Whether it was because of his dreams or maybe something he couldn't think of at the moment, he had no clue. It wasn't long before he heard a familiar shuffling of the feet and muttering under the breath.

"...my mistress, what would she say? An evil, half serpent in her house, sleeping in her rooms, oh she would no doubt punish Kreacher with some clothes." He shuffled into the room, apparently unaware of a presence. Cyrano's first plan was to stay quiet and let the house-elf come to realize he was there on his own time. However, something pushed Cyrano to reveal himself. He did so, without taking note to the flame that leaped onto a candle halfway across the room on its own accord, by pushing himself out of the chair and waving his wand to shut and lock the door. Kreacher spun around and squeaked loudly. He looked ready to flee.

"Just wait and listen," Kreacher did as he was told, probably because he was too scared to do anything more, "I know that you love your mistress very much and that you would never do anything to displease her." Kreacher did not comment, so Cyrano continued.

"I also know she wishes ill will on a lot of us, that is understandable, this is her home and she thinks lesser of us who now occupy it," again, no answer, " I wish to tell you that I do not share any ill will towards her house, or you, for that matter." Kreacher had relaxed some, he was looking at Cyrano with suspicion.

"Why should Kreacher believe young master? He is nothing more than an evil dragon-man. He is the spawn of the fiend himself," Kreacher crooked.

"I think you have me and Voldemort confused. I am the Heir of Merlin, no doubt you've heard about that," Cyrano persisted Kreacher was becoming more comfortable around him, whether the house-elf knew it or not.

"Yes," Kreacher said slowly, "Merlin is known among us house-elfs. He did many things for us house-elfs, he made sure many of us were put in homes, places we could do our work."

"Yes, see. I don't want you thinking we are going to wreck this place for you. True, it may not be the way you had been keeping it, but it is a good change. If you don't believe me, I have a piece offering at least. I will give it to you if you will agree to do as Sirius wishes and try to be polite," Cyrano said with a tone like you would use on a child, "I'll show it to you first before you decide."

Cyrano pulled the golden locket out of his pocket. His head told him he was crazy to be even considering such a thing, especially sense he had a feeling the locket was important. But his heart was telling him it was what needed to be done. He held out the locket for Kreacher to see and it instantly transferred from his hands to Kreacher's.

"Master Regulus's locket!" Kreacher was holding onto it like it was a newborn child.

"Kreacher, can you do as I ask," Cyrano asked politely after a couple minutes. Kreacher looked at Cyrano, he didn't look like he was ready to run nor did he have the same sneer he had for Sirius or the others, it was a look of consideration.

"Kreacher will try to do as young master askes," Kreacher said finally.

"Good, I have a feeling it is important. If ever I call on you, you are to bring it, alright Kreacher, and you are to hide it somewhere in the house, somewhere no one would go willingly," Cyrano said backing away slightly. Kreacher gave a bow and quickly shuffled from the room. Cyrano sighed, it had gone easier than he thought it would. He looked about and mumbled something under his breath. A sliver figure jumped from his wand.

It had been the first time Cyrano had cast the spell since the previous night. He had not wanted anyone else to notice the drastic change of his patronus. The he wasn't exactly sure what was happening, but he was sure it wasn't the figure disappeared, he shivered realizing for the first time how drafty the house was. He cupped his hands and blew into them. A spark jumped and rolled across his skin, shortly changing into a small flame, warming his hands. He put out the flame by rubbing both his hands together.

"How do you do zat?"

Cyrano turned to see Fleur standing in the doorway of the study.

"Well, as I am technically part dragon-"

"You can breath fire?"

"Not really. I don't even know how it works, but I can produce a spark. Because of the scales that are on my hand it just sort of rolls off my skin. Like water on a duck's feathers."

"But your scales, you can't-"

"See them? No, but depending on how much control I put on to keep from changing, they'll be there, just invisible. I often have it all locked away, it's practically nonexistent most of the time. There are times, however, when I feel that this body - Cyrano indicated to himself - is more of a prison than a protection." Fleur had no comment for this and Cyrano was glad. He didn't like to talk about that part of his life, especially since it had been a secret up until the day before.

They went down to the kitchen, no one else was up yet.

"Why are you up so early," Cyrano asked curious.

"Dreams," Fleur said, but her back was turned and Cyrano had a distinct feeling she wasn't telling him everything. He didn't pry, though, after all he had refused to tell her things as well. It was awhile before anyone else was up and it was just nearing to ten when people started getting ready for the train ride to Hogwarts.

There was a lot of commotion in the house. Cyrano witnessed Blake and Jack had bewitch their trunks to fly downstairs to save the bother of carrying them, with the result that they had hurtled straight into Morgan and knocked her down two flights of stairs into the hall; Mrs. Black and Kate were both screaming at the top of their voices.

"- COULD HAVE DONE HER A SERIOUS INJURY, YOU IDIOTS -"

"- FILTHY HALF-BREEDS, BESMIRCHING THE HOUSE OF MY FATHERS -"

Cyrano flinched away from it, he's senses picking it up instinctively, he fell back into the kitchen where all his things were ready. Jonathan appeared moments later carrying Archimedes in his cage. He handed the owl over to its owner.

"Is Morgan all right," Cyrano asked.

"Mum patched her up," said Jonathan, "But now Mad-Eye's complaining that we can't leave unless Sturgis Podmore's here, otherwise the guard will be one short."

"To hell with the guard," Cyrano huffed, "I doubt Voldemort would try anything in the middle of a train station full of wizards and witches, or for that matter, in the open streets where any muggle can see it happen."

"It wont matter soon, we'll have missed the train," Jonathan said under his breath.

Mrs. Black's portrait was howling with rage but nobody was bothering to close the curtains over her; all the noise in the hall was bound to rouse her again, anyway.

"Cyrano, you're to go with Sirius and Tonks," shouted Kate - over the repeated screeches of "MUDBLOODS! SCUM! CREATURES OF DIRT!" - "Leave your trunk and your owl, Alastor's going to deal with the luggage."

As if on que, Sirius appeared by Cyrano's side and pulled at his shoulder. He lead them out o the kitchen down the hallway and to the front door. Sirius wrenched open the front door and stepped out into the weak September sunlight. Cyrano followed him. The door slammed behind them and Mrs. Blacks screeches were cut off instantly.

"Where's Tonks," Cyrano said, looking round as they went down the stone steps of number twelve, which vanished the moment they reached the pavement.

"She's waiting for us just up here," said Sirius.

An old woman greeted them on the corner. She had tightly curled grey hair and wore a purple hat shaped like a pork pie.

"Wotcher, Cyrano," she said, winking, "Better hurry up, hadn't we, Sirius?" she added, checking her watch.

"Yes, yes," Sirius waved his hand in a dismissive gesture, "I don't see why we have to have this 'guard', Cyrano can manage in any event in which were separated."

It took them twenty minutes to reach King's Cross on foot and nothing more eventful happened during that time than Sirius, who had transformed into his animagus form, scaring a couple of cats for Cyrano's entertainment. Once inside the station they lingered casually beside the barrier between platforms nine and ten until the coast was clear, then each of them leaned against it in turn and fell easily through on to platform nine and three-quarters, where the Hogwarts Express stood belching sooty steam over a platform packed with departing students and their families

"I hope the others make it in time," said Tonks anxiously, staring behind her at the wrought-iron arch spanning the platform, through which new arrivals would come.

"Nice dog, Cyrano," called a tall, muscular boy.

"Thanks, Richard," said Cyrano, grinning, as Sirius, who had yet to change back, wagged his tail frantically.

"Oh good," said Tonks, "here's Alastor with the luggage, look…"

A porter's cap pulled low over his mismatched eyes, Moody came limping through the archway pushing a trolley loaded with their trunks. Sirius transformed when Moody came nearer. Several people near by only half glance at the motion and hadn't noticed who the person was, but Cyrano knew, with too many people in the station, people would start to take notice.

"All okay," he muttered to Sirius and Tonks, "don't think we were followed…"

Seconds later, Miles emerged on to the platform with Jonathan and Morgan. They had almost unloaded Moody's luggage trolley when Blake, Jack, and Fleur turned up with Lupin.

"No trouble," growled Moody.

"Nothing," said Lupin.

"I'll still be reporting Sturgis to Dumbledore," said Moody, "that's the second time he's not turned up in a week. Getting as unreliable as Mundungus."

"Well, look after yourselves," said Lupin, shaking hands all round. He reached Cyrano last and gave him a clap on the shoulder,"You too Cy. Be careful."

"Yeah, keep your head down and your eyes peeled," said Moody, shaking Cyrano's hand too, "And don't forget, all of you - careful what you put in writing. If in doubt, don't put it in a letter at all."

"It's been great meeting all of you," said Tonks, hugging Morgan and Fleur "We'll see you soon, I expect."

It will be good to see Nick soon," Kate said as she pulled Cyrano into an embrace. "Mable has no doubt pampered that child to no end."

Sirius took his turn and pulled Cyrano off to the side. Cyrano took note that people were starting to point, so he wanted to end this as quickly as possible.

"Well, I guess this is it for now. Hopefully, by the time Christmas rolls around I'll have a new home that I can invite you to," Sirius said with a smile.

"For all we know, we could possibly be seeing each other sooner," Cyrano grinned.

A warning whistle sounded; the students still on the platform started hurrying on to the train.

"Go, and be good," Sirius said as he pushed his godson away.

"See you," Cyrano called out of the open window as the train began to move, while Jonathan, Morgan and Fleur waved beside him, Jack and Blake having already disappeared. The figures of Tonks, Lupin, Moody, Miles, Kate, and Sirius shrank rapidly, then they rounded a bend, and Sirius was gone. Jonathan and Morgan disappeared as they headed for the Prefect carriage, where they were going to be updated on their duties as a Prefect.

"Let's go," Cyrano told Fleur. He lugged his trunk and Archimedes age through a sea of students. He was getting even more stares and pointing today. Whether it was because Fleur, as far as he was concerned nothing had been published on her transferring, or of what happened last year he was not sure. They peered through glass doors looking for an empty compartment. When he did find one, he found it was occupied by a lone Slytherin. He was reluctant at first, but he didn't know if there was anymore empty compartments and Fleur kind of pushed him into doing it. He slid the door open.

"Er...mind if we take a seat," Cyrano asked nervously. The Sytherin boy looked up and on seeing who was talking to him, paled, but shook his head, indicating that he didn't mind. If there had ever been a more awkward silence then this one, Cyrano couldn't recall it. Neither the two friends or the Slytherin spoke, after all, with the standings of both houses what were they to do. To make the moment even more awkward, the Sytherin finally spoke.

"So..., er, your Odion," the boy asked. Cyrano looked at him and for the first time, took the figure in. Cyrano had seen him before in the corridors, his name was unknown to him, but he knew the face. He was in the same year as Cyrano and was one of the few he could not recall. He had dark brown hair, his eyes were blue and he had an air of nervousness around him. Of course, that might have been because of being in such a close proximity of a Gryffindor, and the heir of Merlin no less.

"Yes," Cyrano said, not sure whether to act coldly or to show indifference. After all, the Sytherin was talking civil enough.

"And your that Beauxbatons champion, Fleur Delacour, right,"Fleur nodded, not exactly sure what to do either.

"I thought you would be going back to you own school,"the Slytherin said with genuine curiosity. Cyrano decided it would be better to answer questions, then have the boy formulate his own theories.

"She had to transfer for personal reasons," Cyrano said quickly, Fleur nodded to confirm the lie. Whether the Slytherin didn't really care for the details or because he knew it was no good to ask about hem, he didn't ask what those personal reasons were.

"I guess it's only right to give you my name, sense I know yours. The name's Tiberius Damon, but Damon is fine." Cyrano was found that this encounter was becoming more awkward by the moment. First the Slytherin talks to them, then he proceeds to tell them his full name! Thing's couldn't get any...No! He wasn't going to think that. It always gets more awkward after such a thought. But of course, it happened anyway.

"Your father doesn't 'appen to be Ridgley Damon. The politician who's trying to pass non-'uman insertion camps," Fleur asked with disgust and suspicion. Cyrano glanced at Fleur in amazement.

Damon slide down slightly in his seat and grumbled, "You don't get to choose your parent's."

Cyrano suddenly felt a pang of pity for the boy. Cyrano had grown up without parent's, but to be stuck with one and hate them, Cyrano found he had had a better life before Hogwarts than this kid probably had. His eyes bore into the blue ones, strangely enough, they were the same hue that the edges of his eyes turned whenever he transformed. He was looking for anything that might tell him something more about Damon, but he was strong minded and didn't reveal anything in his eyes.

"And to extend that, I guess you mean school house as well," Cyrano said with an air of curiosity. Damon blushed at the statement.

"Not entirely, but yes, if you could extend it," Damon grumbled again. Cyrano smirked, genuinely. Next thing they knew, Damon mumbled something under his breath and left the compartment. He left his stuff, so Cyrano knew he intended to come back. This was something Cyrano was looking forward to, a Gryffindor and Slytherin talking civilly, who knew. Plus the phrase "keep your friends close and thy enemies closer" came to mind, and though he was not exactly an enemy, he was a Slytherin.

"That was interesting," Cyrano said casually as he straightened up a little in his seat. Fleur looked at him skeptically and looked like she was going to speak when a familiar and friendly face appeared in the compartment glass door.

"Cho," he exclaimed and opened the door for the seventh year girl to come in.

"Hey, Cy," she said back cheerfully and then took notice of Fleur. Cyrano gave the same excuse as he had given Damon.

"Where's Morgan and Jonathan," Cho asked. She had become a regular friend with the trio having spent enough time around Cedric.

"They're with the other Prefects," Cyrano told her.

"Oh, well, I guess I could expect Jonathan, but Morgan..."

"Yes, we know, it was a surprise to us too. But let's not linger on my company to long. How's Cedric," Cyrano asked. He had been meaning to contact Cedric, but with summer events he hadn't the chance. Cho, at least, could give a little insight on her boyfriends current status.

"He's fine, after last year I'd expect a little more paranoia, but he seems cheerful as ever."

_Yeah right_, Cyrano thought, _Just acting for your own sake. "_

Out loud, he said, "Good to hear. Has he gotten a job yet?"

"He's looking, but nothing so far. I hear he's been talking with some aurors." This did not surprise Cyrano. With the events of last year, he had suspected this. Cyrano know Cedric would do his best, but he was afraid that he was going to end up dead because of him.

They continued their talk for awhile, going from one subject to the next. The twins eventually joined them after their duty of patrolling the compartments. It slow, so slow that Cyrano dosed by the window. Cho had left long ago and Damon hadn't returned yet. Jonathan and Morgan had once more left to patrol the compartments, now it was just him and Fleur. Though, he could have sworn it was just him as Fleur seemed to be in her own far off distant spot. Cyrano sighed and watched as the country passed by. He shifted slightly and he glare of the sun on the window passed over his eyes. He experienced a brief pinch of pain before everything was dark.

He, of course, knew what was happening and though he wished it wasn't, he was filled with curiosity at what he would see. That's what these visions, as he had deemed fit to call them, had become, a form of entertainment, he was also hoping to get another glimpse at something that might tell him something more about the Order's plans. No such luck this time, it had to deal with the unfamiliar trio again.

They were discussing something, unhearable as before except for the muffled voices that were indistinguishable. A map was in between them, Cyrano couldn't tell what the map was about, and they were talking rapidly. The younger male and female looked worried, as if they were unsure in what they were doing. The older male, however, had a look of confidence. The three of them were supporting bags on their backs laddened down with supplies. Cyrano had a distant feeling that they were going somewhere. This continued for several minutes. In that time the leader of the group had raised his voice a couple of times when one of the other two came up with some argument, he even slammed his fist on the wooden table the surrounded.

Finally, it came to an end. They pulled the straps on their bags tight and set out. They were, as before, in a corridor of a sorts. As they rushed through the long expanses of tunnels, Cyrano noticed that they took great measures in not being noticed. The first given example of this was when, what must have been a guard passed through an intersection of a corridor they were taking and all of them jumped into the dark to hide themselves. The guard stopped mid-way through stride, as if he had sensed something, but he soon began his patrolling again. The leader stuck his head out and looked both ways before gesturing for the other two to follow.

Finally, Cyrano saw a light, though he could not see beyond it. They were obviously coming to an exit and were about to use it when a figure stepped out from the shadows and into their way. It was another, though more, unfamiliar figure. They wore dark robes and were of slim stature. He would have taken the person for a Death Eater, but it was unlikely, though he couldn't rightfully claim that as he had no clue as to what was happening. The figure evidently asked something because his hand gestures suggested it and the leader of the trio answered back calmly. They continued their talk, only it was becoming more threatening. The cloaked figure pointed an accusing finger at the taller man, who followed it up by a obviously rude answer and a deep scowl. Through this whole ordeal, the other two witnesses wore looks of concern. Soon heated arguments turned to violence.

Cyrano felt a change in the mood of the vision. Before it had felt like he was watching a movie or something. Now the air turned heavy and it seemed to, though he wasn't quite certain, darken. A dagger appeared out from behind the folds of the cloak figure's robes. A sword was unsheathed from a belt,. Cyrano hadn't taken notice of the weapon before, but what did it matter, now he was. A few more words were shared before the blades met each other. They were as fast as any witch or wizard with a wand. Neither one seemed to take in the account of the other two present, who were both now wearing expressions of anger and worry.

It went back and forth, one moment the cloaked figure seemed to have the advantage, the next the taller man. However Cyrano saw a disadvantage that the military man had well wielding a sword, he couldn't move as fast with a longer weapon. The cloaked figure was pulling his dagger back faster then the other could block, though he had blocked most, having dodged the rest, attacks the dark figure threw at him. He slapped the dagger away and aimed to sever the neck,but was suddenly kicked in the midsection with enough force that the sword flew out of his hands. Now it was him and his armed opponent. The tall man seemed to be as good with hand to hand combat as he was with fencing. Their hand were blurs as the blocked and attacked. The dagger went flying and now they were on the ground beating the snot out of each other.

His viewing of the scene changed instead of being of to the side slightly above everyone's heads, he was staring out from under a dark hood. He was aware he was breathing hard as if he was the one doing all the work. He took a punch to the lower abdomen and felt pain shoot through his body. He used his head as a battering ram and smacked the other in the head. It hurt, but not as much as he knew it pained the other. He took it as a chance to get the upper hand. He threw his weight and dislodged his opponent. He lunged and saw a glint of a blade, he felt the blade of the dagger sink into the middle of his forehead.

Author's Note: Okay, chapter left off at a small cliffhanger. These "visions" will be important later, as you will figure out, but not for a long time. As will this Damon character. I used him as a replacement for Luna, though, he's no where near to being loopy. I'd explain more, but I don't know how to exactly put it into words, so you'll just have to continue to find out. Another thing to make clear is that Cyrano will not always have these "visions" , especially not two, every chapter from now on, maybe every other. Rate and Comment if you want.


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